THz beam forming and beam switching using lens-assisted quasi-optical THz transmitter

In this work, we present a lens-assisted quasi-optical THz transmitter using log-periodic toothed antenna (LPTA) integrated photomixer for beam forming and beam switching. The directivity of the proposed quasi-optical THz transmitter featuring one LPTA and highly-resistive silicon quasi-optics exceeds 26 dBi within the frequency range of 300-400 GHz. A steerable beam direction in the range of ±56° is achieved by a linear shift of the LPTA position on the extended hemispherical lens assembly. Further, a beam switching approach is realized with a 1×2 LPTA array and shows tilted main beam angles of ±33°. Finally, we study the influence of mutual coupling on the input antenna impedance of the linear antenna array.