Analysis of Traveling-Wave Photodetectors for sub-THz Applications

The hybrid DD-TLM method is used for numerical analysis of TWPD structures suitable for sub-THz applications. The method combines semiconductor and full-wave EM analyses on the same computational platform. Characteristics such as bandwidth and saturation are investigated. Application of the TWPD for mm-wave power generation is demonstrated. Both, bandwidth and saturation of the TWPD can be improved by utilizing UTC layout of its optical waveguide. Thus obtained UTC TWPD has been investigated with respect to the absorber thickness, which is an important parameter with affects both its efficiency and bandwidth.