Determination of Permittivity of Dielectric Analytes in the Terahertz Frequency Range Using Split Ring Resonator Elements Integrated with On-Chip Waveguide

Abstract

We investigate the use of finite-element simulations as a novel method for determining the dielectric property of target materials in the terahertz (THz) frequency range using split-ring resonator (SRR) sensing elements integrated into a planar Goubau line (PGL) waveguide. Five such SRRs were designed to support resonances at specific target frequencies. The origin of resonance modes was identified by investigating the electric field distribution and surface current modes in each SRR. Red-shifts were found in the resonances upon deposition of overlaid test dielectric layers that saturated for thicknesses above 10 µm. We also confirmed that the SRRs can work as independent sensors by depositing the analyte onto each individually. The relation between the permittivity of the target material and the saturated resonant frequency was obtained in each case, and was used to extract the permittivity of a test dielectric layer at six different frequencies in the range of 200–700 GHz as an example application. Our approach enables the permittivity of small volumes of analytes to be determined at a series of discrete frequencies up to ~1 THz.