»T-KOS« – Terahertz Technologies for Communication and Sensor Technology

Taking part in a virtual meeting while traveling by train – no problem if there are no gaps in the mobile network. Working remotely underscores the importance of stable data connections. This applies equally to industrial production, which is relying more and more on networked components.  The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

The »T-KOS« project of the Forschungsfabrik Mikroelektronik Deutschland (FMD) is now opening up terahertz technology synergetically for the first time in the fields of communication and sensor technology for industry. Innovative system solutions in both areas make a decisive contribution to the successful implementation of future social issues such as digitalization, Industry 4.0 or resource efficiency.

Our team from the department »Materials Characterization and Testing« department is significantly involved in the »T-KOS« development goals of component and system design, data acquisition and evaluation, and their integration into the demonstrators for terahertz imaging testing.

In Cooperation to Compact System Concepts

»T-KOS« is a joint project of Forschungsfabrik Mikroelektronik Deutschland and Fraunhofer ITWM. It bundles the commitment of ten cooperation partners. The researchers are developing demonstrators for wireless communication with high bit rates and industrial measurement technology based on high-frequency electronics and terahertz photonics. One promising way to increase data capacity at carrier frequencies above 100 GHz is terahertz radio technology. The higher the carrier frequency, the greater the usable bandwidth and thus the data capacity. This means that smaller antenna elements are needed and compact radio systems can be implemented with a large number of active antennas. This is an advantage that also benefits industrial terahertz measurement technology, which is used for imaging inspection.

Demonstrators for Imaging Terahertz Testing

»Electronic and photonic system concepts in the terahertz range are conceptually close to each other,« says Dr. Fabian Friederich, coordinator of the T-KOS activities at Fraunhofer ITWM. »Thanks to our expertise and our good laboratory equipment, we can realize demonstrators for both technology branches in Kaiserslautern for imaging terahertz testing in production processes.« While the fully electronic demonstrator aims at industrially suitable inline measurement technology with millimeter resolution at the production line, the photonic concept serves as a research platform for future developments towards higher frequencies and improved resolution.

Goals of the Project

• Building a German value chain for new 6G terahertz wireless solutions with user transmission rates of at least 100 Gbit/s.
• Inline monitoring of production processes with AI-based, real-time imaging processing for resource-efficient production
• Combination of scalable electronic and photonic concepts for industrial-grade solutions