Terahertz instability of optical phonons interacting with plasmons in two-dimensional electron channels

A terahertz (THz) instability can occur when optical phonons interact with drifting solid-state plasmas. We developed a theoretical model for the optical-phonon instability in two-dimensional electron channels. The paper derives the dispersion relation and analyzes the instability using parameters m...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied physics letters 2010-08, Vol.97 (6)
Main Authors: Sydoruk, O., Kalinin, V., Solymar, L.
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:A terahertz (THz) instability can occur when optical phonons interact with drifting solid-state plasmas. We developed a theoretical model for the optical-phonon instability in two-dimensional electron channels. The paper derives the dispersion relation and analyzes the instability using parameters measured in InSb. As the calculations show, strong instability occurs around the longitudinal optical-phonon frequency, and both the growth rate and the unstable frequency band are larger for higher electron densities and lower drift velocities. The results demonstrate the potential of the optical-phonon instability for active THz devices.
ISSN:0003-6951
1077-3118
DOI:10.1063/1.3479416