Caihe Lei, Bo Fang, Jialu Wu, Can Fang, Yatian Li, Yuhan Xi, Jinhui Cai
Optical Engineering, Vol. 63, Issue 05, 054113, (May 2024) https://doi.org/10.1117/1.OE.63.5.054113
TOPICS: Terahertz radiation, Beam divergence, Measurement uncertainty, Terahertz technology, Angle measurement, Millimeter wave sensors, Optical engineering, Image sensors, Beam propagation method, Terahertz sources
The divergence angle, as one of the important parameters of terahertz radiation, is a significant indicator of the energy distribution of the beam and its accuracy affects the signal-to-noise ratio of the system measurement. We focus on two 100 GHz continuous-wave terahertz sources with different divergence angles and propose a method for analyzing the contour envelope trend of the spot image using image processing techniques, based on the intensity distribution of terahertz radiation. The method involves constructing a conical surface based on the contour point coordinates and then iteratively obtaining the divergence angle, propagation direction, and waist position. Additionally, an uncertainty model is established based on the error source in the conical surface fitting-based divergence angle measurement experiment. Furthermore, a comparative experiment is conducted by combining the focal spot method and the knife-edge method, which verifies the feasibility and accuracy of the conical surface fitting method. The results show that the measured divergence angle of terahertz source I is 2.73 deg with an extended uncertainty of U=3. 88% (k=2), and the measured divergence angle of terahertz source II is 2.23 deg with an extended uncertainty of U=3. 90% (k=2). The measurement of terahertz sources with different divergence angles further demonstrates that the conical surface fitting method is still feasible for sources with different divergence angles.