| Interest in observation at submillimeter wavelengths is constantly growing, fueled in part by astronomical observatory projects such as the Atacama Larger Millimeter Array (ALMA) and new research in terahertz spectroscopy of materials and substances. Coupled with this is the development of fast, low-noise superconducting detectors and heterodyning circuits, capable of bringing the submillimeter regime into the realm of processing electronics. By combining state-of-the-art superconducting microelectronics fabrication technology and high-frequency circuit design, many of the needs of submillimeter receivers can be addressed.;This work extends UVa's significant contributions to the terahertz and hot electron bolometer (HEB) mixer research fields. A new fabrication technique has been developed for producing high-quality nanoscale superconducting HEBs in large quantity and with little operator skill. These devices are fabricated with microscale THz and microwave circuitry on a compact mixer chip for waveguide-type receivers, consisting of an ultra-thin Si substrate. New developments in this substrate technology, developed originally at UVa, improve our capability to reliably produce submillimeter wave mixers, while potentially offering superior receiver performance. Additionally, interesting superconductor materials properties have been explored and documented, as they relate to the fabrication of HEB structures. Culminating this work is the development and testing of a 1.6THz niobium nitride-based HEB mixer and receiver system. |
