Off-plane grating spectrometer for the International X-ray Observatory

McEntaffer, Randall L.; Murray, Neil J.; Holland, Andrew D.; Lillie, Charles F.; Casement, Suzanne; Dailey, Dean; Johnson, Timothy P.; Cash, Webster; Oakley, Phillip H.; Schultz, Ted R.; Burrows, D. N.

doi:10.1117/12.827980

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

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“…OPXGS comprises a grating system to disperse a portion of the telescope beam and a camera system to detect and process the incident X-rays. OPXGS consists of an array of reflection gratings in the off-plane mount that diffracts light onto an array of dedicated imaging detectors [1] . Light intersects the surface of the grating at grazing incidence, ~2.5°, and nearly parallel to the groove direction, maximizing the illumination efficiency on the gratings.…”

Section: Off-plane X-ray Grating Spectrometermentioning

confidence: 99%

Off-plane x-ray grating spectrometer camera for IXO

et al. 2010

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The International X-ray Observatory (IXO) is a merger of the former ESA XEUS and NASA Constellation-X missions, with additional collaboration from JAXA, proposed for launch ~2020. IXO will address the leading astrophysical questions in the 'hot universe' through its breakthrough capabilities in X-ray spectroscopy. The mission covers the 0.1 to 40 keV energy range, complementing the capabilities of the next generation observatories, such as ALMA, LSST, JWST and 30 meter ground-based telescopes. An X-ray Grating Spectrometer is baselined to provide science in the energy range 0.3-1.0 keV at a spectral resolution of E/ΔE > 3,000 with an effective area greater than 1,000 cm 2 . This will require an array of soft X-ray enhanced CCDs operating at a modest frame rate to measure the diffracted light in both position and energy. Here we describe the baseline camera for the Off-plane XGS instrument using mature CCD technology.

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Section: Off-plane X-ray Grating Spectrometermentioning

confidence: 99%

Off-plane x-ray grating spectrometer camera for IXO

et al. 2010

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“…Since the off-plane disperses perpendicular to this direction, there is a significant easing of fabrication tolerances, and the packing geometries can be substantially better Cash (1991). Off-plane gratings have potential for higher resolution work and are currently being studied for the International X-ray Observatory (IXO) , McEntaffer et al (2009), Casement et al (2010).…”

Section: Off-plane Gratingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A suborbital payload for soft X-ray spectroscopy of extended sources

2011

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We present a suborbital rocket payload capable of performing soft X-ray spectroscopy on extended sources. The payload can reach resolutions of ∼ 100 (λ/∆λ) over sources as large as 3.25• in diameter in the 17-107Å bandpass. This permits analysis of the overall energy balance of nearby supernova remnants and the detailed nature of the diffuse soft X-ray background. The main components of the instrument are: wire grid collimators, off-plane grating arrays and gaseous electron multiplier detectors. This payload is adaptable to longer duration orbital rockets given its comparatively simple pointing and telemetry requirements and an abundance of potential science targets.

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“…XGS is planned to have a resolution of >3,000 across the energy range 0.3 keV XGS will have to use several orders of dispersion [8] . The different orders of dispersed light are superimposed on the CCD array creating individual arcs per grating module.…”

Section: Ation Requirementmentioning

confidence: 99%

A study of electron-multiplying CCDs for use on the International X-ray Observatory off-plane x-ray grating spectrometer

et al. 2010

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CCDs are regularly used as imaging and spectroscopic devices on space telescopes at X-ray energies due to their high quantum efficiency and linearity across the energy range. The International X-ray Observatory's X-ray Grating Spectrometer will also look to make use of these devices across the energy band of 0.3 keV to 1 keV. At these energies, when photon counting, the charge generated in the silicon is close to the noise of the system. In order to be able to detect these low energy X-ray events, the system noise of the detector has to be minimised to have a sufficient signal-to-noise-ratio. By using an EM-CCD instead of a conventional CCD, any charge that is collected in the device can be multiplied before it is read out and as long as the EM-CCD is cool enough to adequately suppress the dark current, the signal-to-noise ratio of the device can be significantly increased, allowing soft X-ray events to be more easily detected. This paper will look into the use of EM-CCDs for the detection of low energy X-rays, in particular the effect that using these devices will have on the signal to noise ratio as well as any degradation in resolution and FWHM that may occur due to the additional shot noise on the signal caused by the charge packet amplification process.

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Off-plane grating spectrometer for the International X-ray Observatory

Cited by 6 publications

References 0 publications

Off-plane x-ray grating spectrometer camera for IXO

Off-plane x-ray grating spectrometer camera for IXO

A suborbital payload for soft X-ray spectroscopy of extended sources

A study of electron-multiplying CCDs for use on the International X-ray Observatory off-plane x-ray grating spectrometer

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