Exploring the Impact of Absorber Material on the Performance of a Terahertz Microbolometer by Finite Element Analysis

Microbolometers, functioning as sensitive detectors, play a crucial role in terahertz imaging systems by converting terahertz radiation into measurable electrical signals. The performance of microbolometers heavily relies on the properties of the absorber material employed. In this study, we numerically investigate the impact of two distinct absorber materials, namely gold and pyrolytic carbon (PyC), on the performance of terahertz microbolometers. Finite element simulations are conducted to analyze the absorber material effect on the thermal transient time constant, that is the limiting factor for the bolometer response time, and the mechanical resonance frequency shift, that is related to the sensitivity of microbolometers. The results will help improving detectors for terahertz imaging systems, which represent powerful tools for non-invasive inspection and characterization in various fields.