Nonlinear optical materials convert terahertz radiation into infrared light
Friday, May 9, 2014 - 09:02
in Physics & Chemistry
Terahertz radiation, part of the frequency spectrum of light between microwaves and infrared, can pass through many materials and is potentially useful for applications such as airport security scanning. Commercial use of the technology, however, has been held back by the difficulty in detecting terahertz signals. Kouji Nawata and colleagues from the Tera-Photonics Research Team at the RIKEN Center for Advanced Photonics have now developed a system that can upconvert terahertz radiation to higher-frequency infrared light for more efficient detection.