Integrated superconducting receivers

The concept of a fully superconducting integrated receiver is developed and experimentally tested. This single-chip sub-mm wave receiver includes a planar antenna integrated with a SIS mixer and an internal superconducting Josephson-type local oscillator (flux-flow oscillator, FFO). The receiver is tested with a DSB noise temperature below 100 K around 500 GHz being pumped by its internal local oscillator (LO). The instantaneous bandwidth of 15-20% is estimated via FTS and heterodyne measurements that meet the requirements of most practical applications. The far field antenna beam is measured as ≈f/10 with sidelobes below -16 dB that is suitable for coupling to a real telescope antenna. A nine-pixel imaging array receiver with each pixel containing an internally pumped receiver chip is developed and tested. A linewidth of the phase locked FFO as low as 1 Hz is measured relative to a reference oscillator in the frequency range 270-440 GHz. An rf amplifier on the base of a dc SQUID is developed and tested showing a noise figure below 10 K at 4 GHz and a bandwidth of about 300 MHz. This amplifier can be included as a part of an integrated receiver that is valuable for array applications.

[1]  K. Likharev,et al.  Dynamics of Josephson Junctions and Circuits , 1986 .

[2]  S. Kiryu,et al.  Off-chip detection of radiation from a linear array oscillator with a spiral antenna , 1997, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[3]  A. Baryshev,et al.  An integrated 500 GHz receiver with superconducting local oscillator , 1997, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[4]  J. Zmuidzinas,et al.  Low-noise slot antenna SIS mixers , 1995, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[5]  Gabriel M. Rebeiz.  Millimeter-wave and terahertz integrated circuit antennas , 1992, Proc. IEEE.

[6]  A.V. Rylyakov,et al.  A fully integrated 16-channel RSFQ autocorrelator operating at 11 GHz , 1999, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[7]  S. Pagano,et al.  Experimental study of fluxon resonances in window-type long Josephson junctions , 1995, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[8]  T. Klapwijk,et al.  Submicron niobium junctions for submillimeter‐wave mixers using optical lithography , 1993 .

[9]  R. Huebener,et al.  Multi-fluxon effects in long Josephson junctions , 1993, IEEE transactions on applied superconductivity.

[10]  V. Semenov,et al.  RSFQ logic/memory family: a new Josephson-junction technology for sub-terahertz-clock-frequency digital systems , 1991, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[11]  Andrey M. Baryshev,et al.  First implementation of a superconducting integrated receiver at 450 GHz , 1996 .

[12]  Sergey V. Shitov,et al.  LINEWIDTH OF SUBMILLIMETER WAVE FLUX-FLOW OSCILLATORS , 1996 .

[13]  Raymond Blundell,et al.  Submillimeter receivers for radio astronomy , 1992, Proc. IEEE.

[14]  V. Koshelets,et al.  Integrated rf amplifier based on dc SQUID , 1995, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[15]  A. B. Cawthorne,et al.  STIMULATED EMISSION AND AMPLIFICATION IN JOSEPHSON JUNCTION ARRAYS , 1999 .

[16]  Sergey V. Shitov,et al.  Self-pumping effects and radiation linewidth of Josephson flux-flow oscillators , 1997 .

[17]  J. Mees,et al.  Integrated sub-MM wave receivers , 1995, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[18]  A. Baryshev,et al.  Josephson tunnel junction microwave attenuator , 1993 .

[19]  James E. Lukens,et al.  Demonstration of Josephson effect submillimeter wave sources with increased power , 1994 .

[20]  Mygind,et al.  Spectral linewidth of autonomous and injection-locked flux-flow oscillators. , 1995, Physical review. B, Condensed matter.

[21]  Niels Grønbech-Jensen,et al.  Fiske modes and Eck steps in long Josephson junctions: Theory and experiments , 1998 .

[22]  Tadao Nagatsuma,et al.  Flux-flow type Josephson oscillator for millimeter and submillimeter wave region , 1983 .

[23]  Sergey V. Shitov,et al.  Ultra-low-noise 100 GHz receiver based on parallel biased SIS arrays , 1991 .

[24]  K. Yoshida,et al.  Flux‐flow‐type Josephson oscillator for millimeter and submillimeter wave region. IV. Thin‐film coupling , 1988 .

[25]  M. J. Stephen.  Noise in the ac Josephson Effect , 1969 .

[26]  T. Orlando,et al.  Eck peak in underdamped discrete superconducting vortex flow devices , 1994 .

[27]  S. Benz,et al.  Emission linewidth measurements of two‐dimensional array Josephson oscillators , 1994 .

[28]  Th. de Graauw,et al.  A planar dipole array antenna with an elliptical lens , 1991 .

[29]  S. Shitov,et al.  A dc SQUID based low-noise 4 GHz amplifier , 1997, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[30]  P. Maagt,et al.  Effect of internal reflections on the radiation properties and input admittance of integrated lens antennas , 1999 .

[31]  W. Luinge,et al.  Flux flow oscillators for sub-mm wave integrated receivers , 1999, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[32]  Jonas Zmuidzinas,et al.  Quasi-optical slot antenna SIS mixers , 1991 .

[33]  T. Nagatsuma,et al.  Flux‐flow‐type Josephson oscillator for millimeter and submillimeter wave region. III. Oscillation stability , 1985 .

[34]  A. Rylyakov,et al.  All-digital 1-bit RSFQ autocorrelator for radioastronomy applications: design and experimental results , 1998, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[35]  S. Shitov,et al.  Superconducting millimeter wave oscillators and SIS mixers integrated on a chip , 1993, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[36]  A. Rylyakov.  New design of single-bit all-digital RSFQ autocorrelator , 1997, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[37]  R. Huebener,et al.  Two-dimensional Josephson junction network architectures for maximum microwave radiation emission , 1999, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[38]  Jonas Zmuidzinas,et al.  Characterization of low-noise quasi-optical SIS mixers for the submillimeter band , 1996 .

[39]  John Clarke,et al.  RADIO-FREQUENCY AMPLIFIER BASED ON A NIOBIUM DC SUPERCONDUCTING QUANTUM INTERFERENCE DEVICE WITH MICROSTRIP INPUT COUPLING , 1998 .

[40]  A. Karpov,et al.  Four photons sensitivity heterodyne detection of submillimeter radiation with superconducting tunnel junctions , 1995, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[41]  P. Caputo,et al.  Radiation emission from triangular arrays of Josephson junctions , 1999, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[42]  T. Nagatsuma,et al.  Flux-flow-type Josephson oscillator for millimeter and submillimeter wave region. II. Modeling , 1984 .

[43]  G.S. Lee.  Analysis of linear resonances in modern Josephson geometries , 1991, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[44]  M. W. Pospieszalski,et al.  An integrated SIS mixer and HEMT IF amplifier , 1996 .

[45]  Marc J. Feldman,et al.  Quantum detection at millimeter wavelengths , 1985 .

[46]  Dag Winkler,et al.  Linewidth measurements of Josephson flux‐flow oscillators in the band 280–330 GHz , 1993 .

[47]  K. L. Davis,et al.  Fluxon propagation in Josephson junction transmission lines coupled by resistive networks , 1982 .

[48]  W. H. Mallison,et al.  High-speed single-flux-quantum circuit using planarized niobium-trilayer Josephson junction technology , 1995 .

[49]  Samuel P. Benz,et al.  High power generation with distributed Josephson‐junction arrays , 1996 .

[50]  Henne,et al.  Giant Radiation Linewidth of Multifluxon States in Long Josephson Junctions. , 1996, Physical review letters.

[51]  V. Vaks,et al.  Phase locked 270–440 GHz local oscillator based on flux flow in long Josephson tunnel junctions , 2000 .

[52]  M. J. Wengler,et al.  190-GHz radiation from a quasioptical Josephson junction array , 1995 .

[53]  S. Shitov,et al.  Properties of autonomous and injection locked flux flow oscillators , 1995, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[54]  John Clarke,et al.  DC SQUIDs as radiofrequency amplifiers , 1985 .