A continuous-wave THz imaging system

We develop a continuous wave terehertz (THz) imaging system operating at 288 GHz. This imaging system simply consitutes three parts including the source, two optical lenses, and the detector. The entire size is smaller than the tranditional pulsed THz imaging system. In this developed system, the THz wave is generated by a horn attenna which concentrates the wave in an azimuth angle of 3° ∼ 5°. The source originates from a singnal generator, and then the frequency increases to 288 GHz after passing through an 8X multiplier. Next, THz wave is focused by a THz lens on the test sample. By controling the sample position in the x-z plane, we can scan it pixel-by-pixel in which each step along the x- or z- axes is 0.1 mm. After penetrating the test sample, another lens collects the transmitted THz wave and focuses them into the thermal detector. This detector can disply the collected THz power. Finally, by drawing the detected power of each pixel, a transmitted-intensity figure for all pixels is obtained. The resolution of this THz imaging system is about 1∼2 mm at present. We have measured human molar tooth and obtained its transmitted figures. Besides, we also develop a technology to adjust the positions of the source and detector by a system containing one laser, one beamsplitter, and two mirrors. The relative positions between the source and detector is very important. The input of the source and the output of the detector are small so that they have to aim at each other very accurately in order to collect maximum transmitted power in the detector.