Non-Destructive/Non-Contact Sensing, with Ever-Expanding Possibilities
THz technologies using THz waves are about to be implemented in a wide range of fields. In the medical field, it may be applied to the fast detection of skin cancer, blood testing, and the detection of incorrect ingredients in medicine inside wrappers, etc. It can also detect line disconnections in LSI chips, which is beyond the physical limits of conventional detection methods. THz waves can also help to measure the impurity density, which is an essential process in purifying the semiconductor wafer or structures without contact and fear of destruction. The level of umami (the fifth sense of taste unique to Japan) can be determined in food items , for example, by detecting glutamate without cutting or piercing them. This is possible by checking the fingerprint spectrum of glutamate.
Whether measurement using photo-induced metallic structures becomes possible or not will depend on the availability of facilities and cost. If we can generate and modulate the specific frequency in THz regime, the THz sensing technology would be improved such as investigation of the molecular structures of minute objects or the inside of an object by identifying the response to such a frequency. Judging from recent advancements in the THz technology, a lot of possibilities of THz sensing devices might be expected in various industrial fields within a few years.