Terahertz Beam Steering Antenna Arrays

A terahertz imaging system is disclosed. The terahertz imaging system includes a terahertz antenna array, made up of a plurality of antenna elements. Each antenna element includes a patch antenna, a one bit phase shifter, and a plurality of storage elements. The storage elements are used to store a plurality of phase states that are supplied to the one bit phase shifter. The one bit phase shifter is configured to either shift the phase of the incoming signal by 90 or 270, depending on the value of the phase state. The one bit phase shifter is also bidirectional, allowing it to phase shift transmitted signals and reflected signals. A plurality of these antenna elements are disposed in a semiconductor device, where the top metal layer is exposed. This top metal layer is used to create the patch antennas.