Compact Radiative Control Structures for Millimeter Astronomy

Abstract

We have designed, fabricated, and tested compact radiative control structures, including antireflection coatings and resonant absorbers, for millimeter through submillimeter wave astronomy. The antireflection coatings consist of micromachined single crystal silicon dielectric sub-wavelength honeycombs. The effective dielectric constant of the structures is set by the honeycomb cell geometry. The resonant absorbers consist of pieces of solid single crystal silicon substrate and thin phosphorus implanted regions whose sheet resistance is tailored to maximize absorption by the structure. We present an implantation model that can be used to predict the ion energy and dose required for obtaining a target implant layer sheet resistance. A neutral density filter, a hybrid of a silicon dielectric honeycomb with an implanted region, has also been fabricated with this basic approach. These radiative control structures are scalable and compatible for use large focal plane detector arrays.