Optimization Analysis of a Nano-dot Photoconductive Antenna

The Photoconductive Antenna (PCA) is a compact and simple source for terahertz radiation. It is based on optical-to-electrical conversion principle to generate terahertz radiation. The major challenge with a PCA is its very small efficiency. The efficiency of a PCA majorly depends on the current pulse amplitude generated across the electrodes gap. Its amplitude can be increased by utilizing various methods, one of them is the use of nano-dots at the electrodes gap. The proposed study analyzes the effect of the shape and size of the nano-dots on the PCA current pulse amplitude. For the analysis, cuboid and cylindrical shaped nano-dots with varying separation between the dots have been taken. The results show that using an optimized combination of the nano-dots dimensions, shape and, separation distance between them, the current pulse amplitude can be enhanced by 31.3%.