Dispersion Engineering of Planar Sub-millimeter Wave Waveguides and Resonators with Low Radiation Loss

Abstract: Mm-wave and THz superconducting circuits find numerous applications in areas ranging from quantum information and sensing to high-energy physics. Planar THz transmission lines and resonators are fabrication-friendly, compact, and scalable, and they can be efficiently interfaced with external signals and controls. However, planar circuits radiate strongly at high frequencies, which precludes their use in loss-sensitive applications. Here, we present the design and characterization of planar dispersion-engineered transmission lines that effectively suppress radiation leakage in desired mm-wave bands. We extend this concept to design planar resonators with extremely low radiation leakage, resulting in radiation Q-factors above 106 at 553 GHz. Low-loss planar THz circuitry will impact many application domains, including broadband communications, quantum information, radio astronomy, and cosmology.