A hot electron bolometer (HEB) for terahertz (THz) radiation detection is proposed based on GaAs/AlGaAs bipolar inversion channel field-effect transistor (BICFET). The 2DEG distribution temperature rise due to THz radiation will enhance the thermionic emission of the electrons from the quantum well, and appreciable collector current increase is expected. The detection mechanism is analyzed. The responsivity of the bolometer is expected to be 5 A/W. The noise of the detector is also analyzed. It is shown that shot noise and the 2DEG temperature fluctuation noise dominate the sensitivity of the detector. This THz detector has the advantage of being able to integrate with post-processing circuits on the same chip. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.