Fabrication of terahertz device by 3D printing technology

Abstract

High performance terahertz devices play an essential role in controlling terahertz waves to realize diverse applications. Here we report our work on the design of THz devices manufactured by a commercially available 3D printer, and the parameters of samples are measured by transmission terahertz time-domain spectroscopy system. Taking terahertz waveguide and terahertz filter as examples, Kagome photonic crystal waveguide and one-dimensional photonic crystal structure filter are chosen respectively, and we experimentally demonstrate that the obtained waveguide features average power propagation loss of 0.02 cm-1(the minimum is about 0.002 cm-1) in the range of 0.2-1.0 THz. More interesting, it could be simply mechanically spliced to obtain longer waveguides without causing serious loss. Besides, Terahertz filter features two apparent high loss bands between 0.1-0.5 THz. The transmission characteristics of both the waveguide and the filter are well predicted by the corresponding numerical simulation. The fabricated approach of THz devices based on the 3D printing technique will be a promising solution to fabricate terahertz device with well controllable characteristics and low cost.