Submillimeter Waves

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Submillimeter Waves

 

radio waves with wavelengths λ between 10^–3 and 5 × 10^–5 m (frequencies between 3 × 10¹¹ and 6 × 10¹² hertz). Submillimeter waves have the shortest wavelengths in the radio-frequency portion of the electromagnetic spectrum; shorter waves lie in the optical region. Submillimeter waves are strongly absorbed by water vapor and atmospheric gases, except for a small range of frequencies, called an atmospheric window. Quasi-optical transmission lines are used in working with submillimeter waves (seeQUASI OPTICS). Such waves may be used in addition to optical radiation for space communications.

REFERENCES

See references under RADIO-WAVE PROPAGATION.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.