Abstract
Summary
- Universities, national laboratories, and the commercial sector (both
national and international businesses) continue to increase investment in
terahertz technologies for security, medical, nondestructive inspection, and
manufacturing quality-control applications.
- There are currently about 30 companies globally devoted to commercializing
terahertz technologies. The technology base for terahertz security screening
is expanding rapidly internationally, yet there is insufficient technology
available to develop complete high-end systems capable of, for example,
effectively identifying concealed explosives.
- Terahertz technology in security portal applications has been demonstrated
for detecting and identifying objects concealed on people and is a leading
area of development and commercialization. Airports using or in the process
of conducting trials with THz detection technology are Schiphol (Amsterdam),
Mexico City, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), Chiang Mai (Thailand), and Madrid (Spain),
and the technology is under consideration in the United Kingdom, Italy,
Australia, Russia, and Singapore.
- From a commercialization standpoint, the fundamental hardware to build a
commercial wireless THz communication system does not exist today. We are far
from having room-temperature THz emitters or THz receivers that cost just a
few dollars and are the size of a coin. Developing the technology for a
short-range THz communication system will be challenging and represents a
multidisciplinary and long-term task.
- The market opportunity for counterfeit prevention technologies enabled by
THz is growing, particularly in drugs/pharmaceuticals, defect detection in
semiconductor manufacturing, and other high-value areas. However, given the
current global security climate, the fastest growing area for THz
non-destructive testing is likely to be baggage screening.
- The development of environmental sensing systems utilizing THz technology
is still in its earliest phase. Since THz radiation is highly absorbed by
water, utilizing this technology for atmospheric applications may be limited.
- Currently, billions of dollars are being invested worldwide on remote
sensing terahertz astrophysics and atmospheric missions (though the actual
cost of the THz components within these missions is very small). In many cases
the basic laboratory data required to interpret the observations from these
missions is unavailable, incomplete, or unreliable. There will be an urgent
need over the next decade for high quality terahertz laboratory spectroscopy
on molecules of atmospheric and astrophysical importance.
|
Related Report
|
View Cart
