EurekAlert July 25, 2019
Seamless integration of THz links into existing fibre-optic infrastructures is of great importance to complement the inherent portability and flexibility advantages of wireless networks. Researchers in Germany have demonstrated a THz link that is seamlessly integrated into a fibre-optic network using direct THz-to-optical (T/O) conversion at the wireless receiver. They explored an ultra-broadband silicon-plasmonic modulator having a 3-dB bandwidth in excess of 0.36 THz for T/O conversion of a 50 Gbit s−1 data stream that is transmitted on a 0.2885 THz carrier over a 16-m-long wireless link. Optical-to-THz (O/T) conversion at the wireless transmitter relies on photomixing in a uni-travelling-carrier photodiode. The concept demonstrated by the researchers will considerably reduce technical complexity of future radio base stations and enable terahertz connections with very high data rates – several hundred gigabits per second are feasible…read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Seamless integration of wireless transmission lines into glass-fiber networks results in high-performance data networks. A detailed description of the figure is given at the end of the text. Credit: IPQ/KI