Abstract-Terahertz atmospheric propagation studies in support of wireless remote sensing

John F. O'Hara, Daniel R. Grischkowsky,

https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conference-proceedings-of-spie/10657/106570W/Terahertz-atmospheric-propagation-studies-in-support-of-wireless-remote-sensing/10.1117/12.2305019.short?SSO=1

Next generation sensors will all share in common the requirement to move increasingly massive amounts of data. As such, an infrastructure problem becomes apparent. Even if instruments can produce quality data, it is not necessarily feasible to collect and move it. With the rapidly growing number of sensors, basic data movement becomes an integral system-engineering problem. Wireless networks are being increasingly employed as part of that infrastructure, but may be rapidly overwhelmed, particularly in currently regulated frequency bands. These facts compel the development of terahertz wireless systems, which if implemented correctly could support the massive flow of `cloud', IoT, and distributed data. While such terahertz systems are continually growing closer to practical reality, they are still very immature. From a system-engineering perspective, it is apparent that there are even many fundamental gaps in knowledge that prevent reliable operations. Indeed, terahertz absorption through the atmosphere is still not fully understood, nor even correctly tabulated in some cases. We present new studies on terahertz propagation using comparisons to previous data and the international standards that commonly underpin system-level engineering of wireless systems. In particular, we examine the role of continuum absorption and high frequency absorption wings, and the method by which they are accounted for in engineering standards between 0-1 THz. These studies reveal a need for greater accuracy in atmospheric measurements.