Terahertz response of carbon nanotubes and graphene

The terahertz (THz) research field is expected to serve as a new platform for studying low-energy excitation in solids and higher-order structures in large molecules, and for realizing applications in medicine, agriculture, security, and high-capacity communications. The THz frequency region, however, is located between the electronic and photonic bands, hampering the development of basic components like detectors and sources. This article presents an overview of basic background information about THz waves and THz detector applications and describes the THz response of carbon-based low-dimensional systems, such as single carbon nanotubes (CNT), CNT-array films, and graphene. (author)