From a gas thermometer to a terahertz matrix (a review)

Abstract

The history of the invention and development of the gas thermometer and the ap-pearance of optical-acoustic receivers (OAP) based on it, starting from the first works of Bell, Hayes, Golay, and up to the present time, are considered. The ad-vantages of the OAP, consisting in a constant and high sensitivity in a wide range of the spectrum and the highest detection ability among thermal receivers, are not-ed. The main characteristics of membranes – the main elements of OAP-are con-sidered, and the physical properties of graphene, as the most preferred material for membranes, are analyzed. Estimates have been made showing that the use of SLG graphene membranes makes it possible to create IR and THZ radiation re-ceivers with cells of the order of tens of microns with extremely high sensitivity. A new design scheme is proposed for uncooled matrix helium-graphene optical-acoustic receivers with theoretically extreme sensitivity and speed and an operating range extended to helium temperatures.