Silicon Micromachined Waveguide Calibration Standards for Terahertz Metrology

Abstract

This article presents precision silicon micromachined waveguide calibration standards for use with terahertz vector network analyzers. This enables the creation of precise, highly repeatable, and traceable terahertz waveguide standards, surpassing the limits of current metrology techniques. A single silicon-on-insulator wafer with the appropriate device and handle layer thicknesses is used to implement a wide range of calibration and verification standards. The design of the standards is discussed from mechanical, electrical, and end-user perspectives. Silicon is shown to be the most promising material for the realization of precision metrology standards. We outline the potential to scale the presented design to at least 2.6 THz. Eight types of WM-570 standard, totaling 15 prototypes, are fabricated and characterized between 325 and 500 GHz. Despite some fabrication anomalies, all devices offer excellent performance. The best micromachined standards offer a return loss in excess of 40 dB, an insertion loss of below 0.1 dB, and a phase error of less than 1°. The standards are utilized in both one- and two-port calibrations, including the multiline through-reflect-line algorithm. These are benchmarked against calibrations performed using conventional metallic standards, with a high degree of agreement observed between error-corrected measurements of a range of test devices.