A Hall 'rectenna' can detect signals over a 100 GHz frequency range

Ingrid Fadelli

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Many current wireless communication, imaging and sensing technologies rely on components that convert oscillating electric and magnetic fields (i.e., electromagnetic waves) into electrical signals. Some of the most used components are so-called p-n diodes, semiconducting devices that combine two types of materials with distinct electrical properties.

In conventional diode designs, the conversion of electromagnetic waves into electrical signals relies on the nonlinear transport of electrons. This means that the electric current in the devices does not change proportionally with the voltage applied, which allows them to rectify signals (i.e., convert alternating current into direct current) and combine signals with different frequencies.

A key limitation of traditional diodes is that thermal effects introduce noise, causing electrons to move randomly and making weak signals harder to detect. Moreover, electrons typically take a finite time to travel across the device, also known as the transit time, which limits the performance of the diodes at very high frequencies.

In a recent paper in Nature Electronics, researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences introduced a new device that could overcome the limitations of conventional diodes. The device is referred to as a rectenna, which is derived from the terms "rectifier" and "antenna," and is based on a Weyl semimetal, a type of quantum material with advantageous properties that enable the efficient conversion of electromagnetic waves into electrical signals.

"Nonlinear electron transport in extrinsically doped p–n diodes or junctions is used for rectification and wave mixing in electronic and optoelectronic applications," wrote Zhen Hu, Xiaokai Pan and their colleagues. "However, such rectifiers and mixers have fundamental limitations in terms of cut-off wavelength, frequency, sensitivity and working temperature due to thermal-voltage thresholds and transit-time limits. We report an all-in-one nonlinear Hall rectenna based on a type-II Weyl semimetal at room temperature."

Overcoming the limitations of conventional diodes

After reviewing past literature and building on their earlier works, Hu, Pan and their colleagues set out to develop a new device to convert electromagnetic waves into electrical signals. They found that despite their widespread use, conventional p-n fail to detect very fast signals, and their performance drops significantly under certain conditions.

They thus introduced a device that works both as a rectifier and as an antenna, which is based on the type-II Weyl semimetal niobium iridium tetratelluride (NbIrTe₄). This material was found to convert electromagnetic waves into electrical signals very efficiently, while also performing well at room temperature.

"We use NbIrTe₄ and rely on the electromagnetic conversion abilities that arise from its band geometry and topology," wrote the authors. "With the system, we demonstrate a broadband frequency comb that exceeds the 27th order, subharmonic mixing at low power levels of –25 dBm, tuneable sideband bandwidth higher than 100 GHz and intermediate-frequency signals of over 27 GHz. Our approach offers nonlinear Hall rectification of photonic frequencies between 20 GHz and 820 GHz."

A route towards faster and better performing electronics

In initial tests, the rectenna developed by this research team was found to perform remarkably well, generating a frequency comb and reliably mixing signals of different frequencies and converting them into lower frequency outputs. Notably, the device exhibited a tuneable bandwidth of over 100 GHz, despite requiring a very low input power and operating at room temperature.

In the future, the new device could be integrated with other components to create faster wireless communication systems operating at millimeter-wave and terahertz frequencies, highly sensitive and compact sensors for various applications, and next-generation optoelectronic devices. Meanwhile, other engineers might draw inspiration from the team's design and set out to create similar rectennas based on Weyl semimetals or other topological materials.

Written for you by our author Ingrid Fadelli, edited by Gaby Clark, and fact-checked and reviewed by Robert Egan—this article is the result of careful human work. We rely on readers like you to keep independent science journalism alive. If this reporting matters to you, please consider a donation (especially monthly). You'll get an ad-free account as a thank-you.

Publication details

Zhen Hu et al, An all-in-one Hall rectenna with a bandwidth over 100 GHz, Nature Electronics (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41928-026-01574-8.

Journal information: Nature Electronics

Key concepts

Optical & microwave phenomenaThermal propertiesSemiconductorsTopological materialsMethods in electromagnetism

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