Perturbation slit rectangular patch antenna in terahertz for thermal energy harvesting

Abstract

Research in terahertz (THz) technology is now receiving strong attention worldwide. Devices using this band are predicted to become important in a very wide range of applications. The number of research in this field has increased rapidly in applications such as information and telecommunications, ultrafast computing and energy harvesting technology. Even with such excellent potentials, investigation to explore the properties of devices structure in this band is still lacking. To excite the THz band field response, micro or nano structures are required. In this thesis, a patch structure with enhanced elements are designed and investigated for energy harvesting application at thermal radiation spectrum which lies from 20 THz to 40 THz. A conventional rectangular structure is initially designed to understand the behaviour of performances in THz region. Then a perturbation slit is introduced at the center of the rectangular structure to trap the THz field. Hence, the electrical field is guided into a single collection area named slit tunnel for energy conversion purposes. The relationship between the structure parameters and performances are then analysed and recorded. Through the proposed structure, a broader field bandwidth is achieved which can cover most of the thermal radiation spectrum. Importantly, the amplitude of the electrical field that concentrates on the perturbation slit is increased up to 110.6 V/m with receiving field of 1 V/m which can produce an enhancement factor of 110.6. A promising receiving beamwidth of approximately 850 is also achieved where the THz field can be collected from various directions. Next, the proposed structure is integrated with a Metal-Insulator-Metal (MIM) diode to form antenna-coupled diode. The structure integrates well with the MIM diode to produce approximately 0.495 A/m of magnetic field. The performances obtained are suitable for the proposed structure to be energy harvesting device which can collect the abundant thermal radiation and convert it into usable energy.