Search

The High Energy X-ray Probe (HEX-P) is a probe-class mission concept that combines high spatial resolution x-ray imaging and broad spectral coverage to enable revolutionary new insights into the important astrophysical questions of the next decade. HEX-P will fly a complement of two Hard Energy Mirror Assemblies (HEMA) and one Low Energy Mirror Assembly (LEMA), all of which will have a focal length of 20 meter. Ir/C has been chosen as the baseline coating for the LEMA, and a combination of Pt/C and W/Si multilayers for the HEMA. We present here the mirror design, optimization of coating recipes, and estimated performance.

The ATHENA (Advanced Telescope for High ENergy Astrophysics) mission is the current 2nd 'Large' mission (L2) in the ESA Cosmic Vision programme currently. It is currently at Phase B1 but the mission concept will now enter a reformulation phase that will follow a design-to-cost approach. This paper describes the main technologies behind its reference X-ray telescope based on the modular Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) technology. The large X-ray mirror is the mission enabler being specifically developed for ATHENA, in a joint effort by industry, research institutions and ESA. All aspects of the optics are being addressed, from the mirror plates and their coatings to the mirror modules and their assembly into the ATHENA telescope, as well as the facilities required to build and test the flight optics, demonstrating performance, robustness, and programmatic compliance. An overview of the status of the design and demonstration of the telescope is given. The risks that have successfully been mitigated are made explicit and the remaining risks are identified.

The re-formulation phase of the next generation x-ray observatory ATHENA (Advanced Telescope for High ENergy Astrophysics) – now NewATHENA - is being utilized for further improvements of the optics technology. The Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) remains the technology of choice, since it uniquely combines a low mass, large effective area, and good angular resolution, addressing the challenge of the NewATHENA X-ray optics. The performance and preparation for the cost-effective implementation of the flight optics is being further evolved in a joint effort by industry, research institutions and ESA. The SPO technology greatly benefits from investments in the semiconductor industry and maximizes technology spin-in. Dedicated facilities have been and are being created to produce the required mirror plates, assemble them into stacks and mirror modules, integrate them into the complete telescope and measure the performance and compatibility with the NewATHENA technical and programmatic requirements. An overview of the activities preparing the implementation of the NewATHENA optics is provided.

The next generation x-ray observatory ATHENA (advanced telescope for high energy astrophysics) requires an optics with unprecedented performance. It is the combination of low mass, large effective area and good angular resolution that is the challenge of the x-ray optics of such a mission. ATHENA is the second large class mission in the science programme of ESA, and is currently in a reformulation process, following a design-to-cost approach to meet the cost limit of an ESA L-class mission. The silicon pore optics (SPO) is the mission enabler being specifically developed for ATHENA, in a joint effort by industry, research institutions and ESA. All aspects of the optics are being addressed, from the mirror plates and their coatings, over the mirror modules and their assembly into the ATHENA telescope, to the facilities required to build and test the flight optics, demonstrating performance, robustness, and programmatic compliance. The SPO technology is currently being matured to the level required for the adoption of the ATHENA mission, i.e., the start of the mission implementation phase. The monocrystalline silicon material and pore structure of the SPO provide these optics with excellent thermal and mechanical properties. Benefiting from technology spin-in from the semiconductor industry, the equipment, processes, and materials used to produce the SPO are highly sophisticated and optimised.

Metallic coatings made of precious metals (e.g. Ir, Pt or Au) with high atomic number Z have been traditionally employed at grazing incidence for X-rays reflection and focalization. These materials offer a range of reflection extended to higher energies, but also present a series of absorption edges, which limit the reflectivity in the 2-4 keV band and below. Therefore the search for alternative coatings, able to improve the reflection in the soft energy range, is particularly relevant for the development of future telescopes, like ATHENA (ESA), Lynx (NASA) and eXTP (CAS). Low-Z overcoatings (e.g. carbon or B4C), applied on top of the high-Z metallic layer, can enhance the reflectivity in the softer band (mainly below 2 keV), but conventional deposition methods for these materials are not easily compatible with some of the mainstream technologies for mirror fabrication (notably, the silicon pore optics that will be used for the ATHENA X-ray mission which is being implemented by ESA). In this work we discuss novel solutions (carbon-like overcoatings realized by dip coating or vapor phase deposition), which can be particularly convenient for the application to ATHENA and to future telescopes.

The ATHENA mission, under study and preparation by ESA as its second Large-class science mission, requires the largest X-ray optics ever flown, building on a novel optics technology based on mono crystalline silicon. Referred to as Silicon Pore Optics technology (SPO), the optics is highly modular and benefits from technology spin-in from the semiconductor industry. The telescope aperture of about 2.5 meters is populated by 600 mirror modules, accurately co -aligned to produce a common focus. The development of the SPO technology is a joint effort by European industrial and research entities, working together to address the challenges to demonstrate the imaging performance, robustness and efficient series production of the ATHENA optics. A technology development plan was established and is being regularly updated to reflect the latest developments, and is fully funded by the ESA technology development programmes. An industrial consortium was formed to ensure coherence of the individual technology development activities. The SPO technology uses precision machined mirror plates produced using thelatest generation top quality 12 inch silicon wafers, which are assembled into rugged stacks. The surfaces of the mirror plates and the integral support structure is such, that no glue is required to join the individual mirror plates. Once accurately aligned with respect to each other, the surfaces of the mirror plates merge in a physical bonding process. The resultant SPO mirror modules are therefore very accurate and stable and can sustain the harsh conditions encountered during launch and are able to tolerate the space environment expected during operations. The accommodation of the ATHENA telescope is also innovative, relying on a hexapod mechanismto align the optics to the selected detector instruments located in the focal plane. Systemstudies are complemented by dedicated technology development activities to demonstrate the capabilities before the adoption of the ATHE

The Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) technology has been established as a new type of X-ray optics and will enable future X-ray observatories such as Athena and Arcus. SPO is being developed at cosine Research B.V. together with the European Space Agency (ESA) and academic as well as industrial partners. For Athena, about 150,000 mirror plates are required. With the technology spin-in from the semiconductor industry, mass production processes can be employed to manufacture rectangular SPO mirror plates in high quality, large quantity and at low cost. Over the last years, several aspects of the SPO mirror plates have been reviewed and undergone further developments in terms of effective area, intrinsic behavior of the mirror plates and mass production capability. The paper will provide an overview of most recent SPO plate designs, mirror plate production status and plan forward including reflective coating process as well as mass production developments.

Mission studies and technology preparation for the ATHENA (Advanced Telescope for High ENergy Astrophysics) [1- 5] mission are continuing to progress. The X-ray optics of this future space observatory are based on the Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) technology [6-58], and is being evolved in a joint effort by industry, research institutions and ESA. The SPO technology benefits from substantial investments made by the semiconductor industry, and spins-in materials, processes and equipment into the development of novel X-ray optics. A comprehensive Technology Development Plan (TDP) is being implemented, funded by ESA and involving a large number of experts in key areas ranging from micro machining of Silicon, over sophisticated automation and robotic systems, to hybrid manufacturing. The performance, environmental compatibility and serial automated production and testing are being addressed in parallel, aiming at the demonstration of the required technology readiness for the ATHENA Mission Adoption Review (MAR) expected by the end of 2021. A formal Technology Readiness Assessment is in place and is being currently exercised in preparation of the ATHENA Mission Formulation review (MFR). The programmatics for the flight model implementation is being defined in detail, and preparations are starting for the design and implementation of the necessary facilities. An overview of the ATHENA optics technology preparation, the technology readiness assessment and the related activities is provided.

Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) uses commercially available monocrystalline double-sided super-polished silicon wafers as a basis to produce mirrors that form lightweight and stiff high-resolution x-ray optics. The technology has been invented by cosine and the European Space Agency (ESA) and developed together with scientific and industrial partners to mass production levels. SPO is an enabling element for large space-based x-ray telescopes such as Athena and ARCUS, operating in the 0.2 to 12 keV band, with angular resolution requirements up to 5 arc seconds. SPO has also shown to be a versatile technology that can be further developed for gamma-ray optics, medical applications and for material research. This paper will summarise the status of the technology and of the mass production capabilities, show latest performance results and discuss the next steps in the development.

The Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) technology has been established as a new type of X-ray optics enabling future X-ray observatories such as ATHENA. SPO is being developed at cosine together with the European Space Agency (ESA) and academic as well as industrial partners. The SPO modules are lightweight, yet stiff, high-resolution X-ray optics, allowing missions to reach a large effective area of several square meters. These properties of the optics are mainly linked to the mirror plates consisting of mono-crystalline silicon. Silicon is rigid, has a relatively low density, a very good thermal conductivity and excellent surface finish, both in terms of figure and surface roughness. For Athena, a large number of mirror plates is required, around 100,000 for the nominal configuration. With the technology spin-in from the semiconductor industry, mass production processes can be employed to manufacture rectangular shapes SPO mirror plates in high quality, large quantity and at low cost. Within the last years, several aspects of the SPO mirror plate have been reviewed and undergone further developments in terms of effective area, intrinsic behavior of the mirror plates and mass production capability. In view of flight model production, a second source of mirror plates has been added in addition to the first plate supplier. The paper will provide an overview of most recent plate design, metrology and production developments.

The development of the X-ray optics for ATHENA (Advanced Telescope for High ENergy Astrophysics)[1-4], the selected second large class mission in the ESA Science Programme, is progressing further, in parallel with the payload preparation and the system level studies. The optics technology is based on the Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) [5-48], which utilises the excellent material properties of Silicon and benefits from the extensive investments made in the semiconductor industry. With its pore geometry the SPO is intrinsically very robust and permits the use of very thin mirrors while achieving good angular resolution. In consequence, the specific mass of the resultant ATHENA optics is very low compared to other technologies, and suitable to cope with the imposed environmental requirements. Further technology developments preparing the ATHENA optics are ongoing, addressing additive manufacturing of the telescope structure, the integration and alignment of the mirror assembly, numerical simulators, coating optimisations, metrology, test facilities, studies of proton reflections and meteorite impacts, etc. A detailed Technology Development Plan was elaborated and is regularly being updated, reflecting the progress and the mission evolution. The required series production and integration of the many hundred mirror modules constituting the ATHENA telescope optics is an important consideration and a leading element in the technology development. The developments are guided by ESA, implemented in industry and supported by research institutions. The many ongoing SPO technology development activities aim at demonstrating the readiness of the optics technology at the review deciding the adoption of ATHENA onto the ESA Science flight programme, currently expected for 2021. Technology readiness levels of 5/6 have to be demonstrated for all critical elements, but also the compliance to cost and schedule constraints for the mission.

Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) has been established as a new type of x-ray optics that enables future x-ray observatories such as Athena. SPO is being developed at cosine with the European Space Agency (ESA) and academic and industrial partners. The optics modules are lightweight, yet stiff, high-resolution x-ray optics, that shall allow missions to reach an unprecedentedly large effective area of several square meters, operating in the 0.2 - 12 keV band with an angular resolution better than 5 arc seconds. In this paper we are going to discuss the latest generation production facilities and we are going to present results of the production of mirror modules for a focal length of 12 m, including x-ray test results.

The work on the definition and technological preparation of the ATHENA (Advanced Telescope for High ENergy Astrophysics) mission continues to progress. In parallel to the study of the accommodation of the telescope, many aspects of the X-ray optics are being evolved further. The optics technology chosen for ATHENA is the Silicon Pore Optics (SPO), which hinges on technology spin-in from the semiconductor industry, and uses a modular approach to produce large effective area lightweight telescope optics with a good angular resolution. Both system studies and the technology developments are guided by ESA and implemented in industry, with participation of institutional partners. In this paper an overview of the current status of the telescope optics accommodation and technology development activities is provided.

Silicon Pore Optics (SPO), developed at cosine with the European Space Agency (ESA) and several academic and industrial partners, provides lightweight, yet stiff, high-resolution X-ray optics. This technology enables ATHENA to reach an unprecedentedly large effective area in the 0.2-12 keV band with an angular resolution better than 5". After developing the technology for 50 m and 20 m focal length, this year has witnessed the first 12 m focal length mirror modules being produced. The technology development is also gaining momentum with three different radii under study: Mirror modules for the inner radii (Rmin = 250 mm), outer radii (Rmax = 1500 mm) and middle radii (Rmid= 737 mm) are being developed in parallel.

Further space exploration in the far-infrared (FIR) requires larger apertures in order to improve the spatial resolution of captured images., SCOPUS: cp.p, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Astronomy is driven by the quest for higher sensitivity and improved angular resolution in order to detect fainter or smaller objects. The far-infrared to submillimeter domain is a unique probe of the cold and obscured Universe, harboring for instance the precious signatures of key elements such as water. Space observations are mandatory given the blocking effect of our atmosphere. However the methods we have relied on so far to develop increasingly larger telescopes are now reaching a hard limit, with the JWST illustrating this in more than one way (e.g. it will be launched by one of the most powerful rocket, it requires the largest existing facility on Earth to be qualified). With the Thinned Aperture Light Collector (TALC) project, a concept of a deployable 20 m annular telescope, we propose to break out of this deadlock by developing novel technologies for space telescopes, which are disruptive in three aspects: â An innovative deployable mirror whose topology, based on stacking rather than folding, leads to an optimum ratio of collecting area over volume, and creates a telescope with an eight times larger collecting area and three times higher angular resolution compared to JWST from the same pre-deployed volume; â An ultra-light weight segmented primary mirror, based on electrodeposited Nickel, Composite and Honeycomb stacks, built with a replica process to control costs and mitigate the industrial risks; â An active optics control layer based on piezo-electric layers incorporated into the mirror rear shell allowing control of the shape by internal stress rather than by reaction on a structure. We present in this paper the roadmap we have built to bring these three disruptive technologies to technology readiness level 3. We will achieve this goal through design and realization of representative elements: segments of mirrors for optical quality verification, active optics implemented on representative mirror stacks to characterize the shape correction capabilit, SCOPUS: cp.p, info:eu-repo/semantics/published

The Advanced Telescope for High ENergy Astrophysics (Athena) was selected in 2014 as the second large class mission (L2) of the ESA Cosmic Vision Science Programme within the Directorate of Science and Robotic Exploration. The mission development is proceeding via the implementation of the system studies and in parallel a comprehensive series of technology preparation activities. [1-3].The core enabling technology for the high performance mirror is the Silicon Pore Optics (SPO), a modular X-ray optics technology, which utilises processes and equipment developed for the semiconductor industry [4-31].This paper provides an overview of the programmatic background, the status of SPO technology and give an outline of the development roadmap and activities undertaken and planned by ESA.

Reflectivity (reflection loss) investigations of nickel samples with different types of surface finish, with and without rhodium coating, have been carried out in the 110-200 GHz frequency range on an installation developed in the Applied Physics Institute of Russia. The reflectivity measurements of high quality silver coated and gold coated mirrors are also presented. The reflectivity (reflection loss) investigations of some carbon fibre samples with and without aluminium coating have been made. Results are interesting, in view of the anisotropy of the carbon fibre material.

The ALMA (Atacama large millimetre array) project aims at a realisation of a 64-element radiotelescope ground array with 12 m Cassegrain antennas as single receiving elements. The receivers will operate between 30 and 900 GHz, thus putting very stringent requirements on each separate element or 12 m Cassegrain antenna. National Radio-Astronomy Organisation, NRAO, (USA) and European Southern Observatory, ESO, (Europe) have collaborated to realise, in 2003, two prototype antennas (for details, see www.eso.org under Atacama project). Surface accuracy requirements are below 10 μm rms. An interesting technology has been selected for the reflector panels in one prototype: electroforming. The technology applied for the antenna reflector panels comes as a spin-off from a dedicated space technology development carried out for the XMM X-ray satellite project (www.esa.int and search for XMM). The technological developments needed to arrive at such accurate reflector panels are described, together with results and related achievements.