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Millimeter-wave and Terahertz Power Meter Characterisation at W-band Frequencies

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Abstract

Traceability for power measurements at high millimeter-wave and terahertz frequencies presents significant challenges since traditional waveguide micro-calorimetry systems are only readily available at frequencies up to 110 GHz. There are, however, different types of commercially available power meters which operate at frequencies above 110 GHz, where a lack of traceability means the accuracy and associated uncertainty of measurements using these power meters is not well understood. This paper describes the characterisation and traceable calibration of a commercially available waveguide power meter (VDI Erickson PM5) which is designed to operate from 75 GHz to 3 THz, using appropriate waveguide tapers. This includes an assessment of the overall system performance along with an evaluation of the uncertainty in measurements made using the system. The assessment is carried out at W-band (75 to 110 GHz) by comparison with micro-calorimeter systems which are used as primary standard power measurement systems at these frequencies.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Dr Murat Celep (NPL) for helpful suggestions and discussions concerning an earlier draft and review of this paper. The authors also would like to thank Dr Jeffrey Hesler (VDI) for providing useful information regarding the use of the PM5 power meter.

Funding

This work was supported by the European Metrology Programme for Innovation and Research (EMPIR) Project 18SIB09 TEMMT “Traceability for electrical measurements at millimetre-wave and terahertz frequencies for communications and electronics technologies” (TEMMT). The EMPIR Programme is co-financed by the participating states and from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Physical Laboratory, Teddington, TW11 0LW, UK

    Daniel Stokes, Xiaobang Shang & Nick M. Ridler

  2. School of Physics, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, China

    Yu Liu

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  1. Daniel Stokes
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Contributions

D. Stokes: conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, investigation, writing—original Draft Y. Liu: investigation, writing—review and editing X. Shang: conceptualization, writing—review and editing N. M. Ridler: supervision, writing—review and editing.

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Correspondence to Daniel Stokes.

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Stokes, D., Liu, Y., Shang, X. et al. Millimeter-wave and Terahertz Power Meter Characterisation at W-band Frequencies. J Infrared Milli Terahz Waves 44, 134–150 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10762-022-00898-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10762-022-00898-8

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