| his dissertation describes the development of two semiconductor devices which may be used in heterodyne receivers at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths (100 GHz to over 3000 GHz). These devices include a multiplier diode, used in the local oscillator (LO) subsystem, and the mixer diode which is used to convert the high frequency signal (e.g. 3000 GHz) to a lower frequency (e.g. 10 GHz) where the signal may be analyzed. Since the heterodyne receiver is used in many fields of research, including radio astronomy, atmospheric science and plasma diagnostics, improvements to the receiver sensitivity will lead to advances in many scientific disciplines.;The varactor diode described here is a novel Schottky diode which may be used as a frequency multiplier in the LO source of the receiver. This new device, called the Schottky/2-DEG diode, is a planar diode having unique and possibly superior electrical characteristics compared with the state-of-the-art GaAs diode. This dissertation also describes the development of ultra-small (0.15-0.5... |
