Responsivity and noise characteristics of AlGaN/GaN-HEMT terahertz detectors at elevated temperatures

摘要

The responsivity and the noise of a detector determine the sensitivity. Thermal energy usually affects both the re-sponsivity and the noise spectral density. In this work, the noise characteristics and responsivity of an antenna-coupled Al-GaN/GaN high-electron-mobility-transistor (HEMT) terahertz detector are evaluated at temperatures elevated from 300 K to 473 K. Noise spectrum measurement and a simultaneous measurement of the source–drain conductance and the terahertz photocurrent allow for detailed analysis of the electrical characteristics, the photoresponse, and the noise behavior. The responsivity is reduced from 59 mA/W to 11 mA/W by increasing the detector temperature from 300 K to 473 K. However, the noise spectral density maintains rather constantly around 1–2 pA/Hz1/2 at temperatures below 448 K, above which the noise spectrum abruptly shifts from Johnson-noise type into flicker-noise type and the noise density is increased up to one order of magnitude. The noise-equivalent power (NEP) is increased from 22 pW/Hz1/2 at 300 K to 60 pW/Hz1/2 at 448 K mainly due to the reduction in mobility. Above 448 K, the NEP is increased up to 1000 pW/Hz1/2 due to the strongly enhanced noise. The sensitivity can be recovered by cooling the detector back to room temperature.