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The NIRSpec instrument on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) brings the first multi-object spectrograph (MOS) into space, enabled by a programmable Micro Shutter Array (MSA) of ~250,000 individual apertures. During the 6-month Commissioning period, the MSA performed admirably, completing ~800 reconfigurations with an average success rate of ~96% for commanding shutters open in science-like patterns. We show that 82.5% of the unvignetted shutter population is usable for science, with electrical short masking now the primary cause of inoperable apertures. In response, we propose a plan to recheck existing shorts during nominal operations, which is expected to reduce the number of affected shutters. We also present a full assessment of the Failed Open and Failed Closed shutter populations, which both show a marginal increase in line with predictions from ground testing. We suggest an amendment to the Failed Closed shutter flagging scheme to improve flexibility for MSA configuration planning. Overall, the NIRSpec MSA performed very well during Commissioning, and the MOS mode was declared ready for science operations on schedule., Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, to appear in Proceedings of SPIE conference "Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2022: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave"

The far-infrared imager and polarimeter (FIP) for the Origins Space Telescope (Origins) is a basic far-infrared imager and polarimeter. The camera will deliver continuum images and polarization measurements at 50 and 250 μm. Currently available detector technologies provide sufficient sensitivity for background limited observations from space, at least on a single pixel basis. FIP incorporates large next-generation superconducting detector arrays and our technology development plan will push the pixel numbers for the arrays to the required size of 8000. Two superconducting detector technologies are currently candidates for the instrument: transition edge sensors or microwave kinetic inductance devices. Using these detectors and taking advantage of the cryogenic telescope that is provided by Origins, FIP will achieve mapping speeds of up to eight orders of magnitude faster than what has been achieved by existing observatories. The science drivers for FIP include observations of solar system objects, dust properties, and magnetic field studies of the nearby interstellar medium, and large scale galaxy surveys to better constrain the star formation history of the universe to address one of the main themes of Origins: “How does the Universe work?” In addition to the science, the FIP instrument plays a critical functional role in aligning the mirrors during on orbit observatory commissioning.

The high-resolution mid-infrared spectrometer (HIRMES) is a high resolving power (R ~ 100,000) instrument operating in the 25–122 μm spectral range and will fly on board the Stratospheric Observatory for Far-Infrared Astronomy in 2019. Central to HIRMES are its two transition edge sensor (TES) bolometric cameras, an 8 × 16 detector high-resolution array and a 64 × 16 detector low-resolution array. Both types of detectors consist of Mo/Au TES fabricated on leg-isolated Si membranes. Whereas the high-resolution detectors, with a noise equivalent power (NEP) ~ 1.5 × 10−18 W/rt (Hz), are fabricated on 0.45 μm Si substrates, the low-resolution detectors, with NEP ~ 1.0 × 10−17 W/rt (Hz), are fabricated on 1.40 μm Si. Here, we discuss the similarities and differences in the fabrication methodologies used to realize the two types of detectors.

The discovery of the Trappist-1 system, which consists of an ultra cool M-dwarf star orbited by 7 planets, 3 of which are located in the habitable zone, has demonstrated that these types of planetary systems around dwarf stars are very common. Such systems are well suited for the study of exoplanets. In particular the search for bio-signatures in the atmosphere of planets in the habitable zone around M-stars will be a high-priority science goal of future space missions. The mid-infrared (mid-IR) band between 3 and 15 microns is probably the best available band for this science, because the spectral lines of methane, ozone, and nitrous oxide can be found in this spectral range. he coexistence of these constituents in a planets atmosphere would be a very strong indicator for life on the planet. Mid-IR transit spectrometers on future space missions such as Origins Space Telescope (OST) will be the instrument of choice to detect these bio-signatures in exoplanets around M-dwarfs. Current mid-IR detectors are based on impurity band conduction (IBC) devices such as Si: As detectors. Charge trapping in these device leads to a time and exposure dependent response. As a result, this detector class is not expected to provide the required 5 ppm stability needed for a reliable detection of the aforementioned spectral lines. While efforts are under way to improve IBC detectors, it is un-clear how far the performance can be improved. Here we describe the development of an ultra-stable Mid-IR Array Spectrometer demonstration for Exoplanet Transits (MI-RASET), which includes a calibration system that, as we show, is needed to achieve the required sensitivity for the detection of atmospheric bio-signatures in habitable-zone planets around M-dwarfs. The spectrometer will be demonstrated with arrays of Transition Edge Sensor detectors (TES). These devices are known to have a very linear response and are intrinsically very stable. Furthermore, the required detector parameters (sensitivity, dynamic range) for space based mid-IR transit spectroscopy can be easily met with existing devices. No new detector developments are required, only the absorbers need to be optimized for the wavelength range of the instrument. This project will include the development of a high-accuracy calibration system with a stable reference source which itself will be monitored in the visible (0.5μm) by a photo diode. At this wavelength the precision of the load temperature measurement exceeds that of an in-band calibration. This scheme will allow for real time monitoring of the detector gain and offset, which we anticipate will result in a background limited performance with the required stability of better than 5 ppm for the detection of bio-signatures in a designated spectrometer flying e.g. on the OST space telescope, and as such will help to answer one of NASA's prime questions: “Are we alone?”

High-resolution Airborne Wide-band Camera (HAWC[Formula: see text]) is the facility far-infrared imager and polarimeter for SOFIA, NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. It is designed to cover the portion of the infrared spectrum that is completely inaccessible to ground-based observatories and which is essential for studies of astronomical sources with temperatures between tens and hundreds of degrees Kelvin. Its ability to make polarimetric measurements of aligned dust grains provides a unique new capability for studying interstellar magnetic fields. HAWC[Formula: see text] began commissioning flights in April 2016 and was accepted as a facility instrument in early 2018. In this paper, we describe the instrument, its operational procedures, and its performance on the observatory.

The OSS on the Origins Space Telescope is designed to decode the cosmic history of nucleosynthesis, star formation, and supermassive black hole growth with wide-area spatial-spectral 3-D surveys across the full 25 to 590 micron band. Six wideband grating modules combine to cover the full band at R=300, each couples a long slit with 60-190 beams on the sky. OSS will have a total of 120,000 background-limited detector pixels in the six 2-D arrays which provide spatial and spectral coverage. The suite of grating modules can be used for pointed observations of targets of interest, and are particularly powerful for 3-D spectral spectral surveys. To chart the transition from interstellar material, particularly water, to planetary systems, two high-spectral-resolution modes are included. The first incorporates a Fourier-transform spectrometer (FTS) in front of the gratings providing resolving power of 25,000 (δv = 12 km/s) at 179 µm to resolve water emission in protoplanetary disk spectra. The second boosts the FTS capability with an additional etalon (Fabry-Perot interferometer) to provide 2 km/s resolution in this line to enable detailed structural studies of disks in the various water and HD lines. Optical, thermal, and mechanical designs are presented, and the system approach to the detector readout enabling the large formats is described.

The search for biosignatures in the atmospheres of exoplanets will be a key focus of future space telescopes that operate in the ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared bands. Detection of biosignatures requires an instrument with moderate spectral resolving power ($R \sim 100$) and a large bandwidth ($\sim 400$ nm -- $\sim 1.8$ $\mu$m). Additionally, biosignature detection is a photon-starved science; instruments designed for these measurements would ideally combine high optical efficiency with quantum-limited photon detectors (i.e., detectors that exhibit zero dark current). In this work, we report on our efforts to develop energy resolving transition edge sensor (TES)-based detectors designed for biosignature detection. TESs operated as microcalorimeters are compelling detectors for this application. Unlike semiconductor detectors, TESs eliminate the need for dispersive optics and are truly single photon detectors -- fundamental TES noise yields uncertainty in the energies of detected photons, not in the number of detected photons. We introduce TESs designed for this application and discuss the path toward realizing a TES-based dispersionless spectrometer optimized for biosignature detection.

The Primordial Inflation Polarization ExploreR (PIPER) is a balloon-borne instrument optimized to measure the polarization of the CMB at large angular scales. It will map 85% of the sky over a series of conventional balloon flights from the Northern and Southern hemispheres, measuring the B-mode polarization power spectrum over a range of multipoles from 2-300 covering both the reionization bump and the recombination peak, with sensitivity to measure the tensor-to-scalar ratio down to r = 0.007. PIPER will observe in four frequency bands centered at 200, 270, 350, and 600 GHz to characterize dust foregrounds. The instrument has background-limited sensitivity provided by fully cryogenic (1.7 K) optics focusing the sky signal onto kilo-pixel arrays of time-domain multiplexed Transition-Edge Sensor (TES) bolometers held at 100 mK. Polarization sensitivity and systematic control are provided by front-end Variable-delay Polarization Modulators (VPMs). PIPER had its engineering ight in October 2017 from Fort Sumner, New Mexico. This papers outlines the major components in the PIPER system discussing the conceptual design as well as specific choices made for PIPER. We also report on the results of the engineering flight, looking at the functionality of the payload systems, particularly VPM, as well as pointing out areas of improvement.

We report new polarimetric and photometric maps of the massive star-forming region OMC-1 using the HAWC+ instrument on the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). We present continuum polarimetric and photometric measurements of this region at 53, 89, 154, and 214 microns at angular resolutions of 5.1, 7.9, 14.0, and 18.7 arcseconds for the four bands, respectively. The photometric maps enable the computation of improved SEDs for the region. We find that at the longer wavelengths, the inferred magnetic field configuration matches the `hourglass' configuration seen in previous studies, indicating magnetically-regulated star formation. The field morphology differs at the shorter wavelengths. The magnetic field inferred at these wavelengths traces the bipolar structure of the explosive Becklin-Neugebauer (BN)/Kleinman-Low (KL) outflow emerging from OMC-1 behind the Orion Nebula. Using statistical methods to estimate the field strength in the region, we find that the explosion dominates the magnetic field near the center of the feature. Farther out, the magnetic field is close to energetic equilibrium with the ejecta and may be providing confinement to the explosion. The correlation between polarization fraction and the local polarization angle dispersion indicates that the depolarization as a function of unpolarized intensity is a result of intrinsic field geometry as opposed to decreases in grain alignment efficiency in denser regions., Comment: 28 pages, 14 figures, ApJ, accepted

We describe our efforts to build a Wide-Field Lyman alpha Geocoronal simulator (WFLaGs) for characterizing the end-to-end sensitivity of FORTIS (Far-UV Off Rowland-circle Telescope for Imaging and Spectroscopy) to scattered Lyman α emission from outside of the nominal (1/2 degree)2 field-of-view. WFLaGs is a 50 mm diameter F/1 aluminum parabolic collimator fed by a hollow cathode discharge lamp with a 80 mm clear MgF2 window housed in a vacuum skin. It creates emission over a 10 degree FOV. WFLaGS will allow us to validate and refine a recently developed scattered light model and verify our scatter light mitigation strategies, which will incorporate low scatter baffle materials, and possibly 3-d printed light traps, covering exposed scatter centers. We present measurements of scattering intensity of Lyman alpha as a function of angle with respect to the specular reflectance direction for several candidate baffle materials. Initial testing of WFLaGs will be described.

We present the main design features for the GISMO-2 bolometer camera, which we build for background-limited operation at the IRAM 30 m telescope on Pico Veleta, Spain. GISMO-2 will operate simultaneously in the 1 and 2 mm atmospherical windows. The 1 mm channel uses a 32×40 TES-based backshort under grid (BUG) bolometer array, the 2 mm channel operates with a 16×16 BUG array. The camera utilizes almost the entire full field of view provided by the telescope. The optical design of GISMO-2 was strongly influenced by our experience with the GISMO 2 mm bolometer camera, which is successfully operating at the 30 m telescope. GISMO is accessible to the astronomical community through the regular IRAM call for proposals.

Micro-Spec is a compact sub-millimeter (approximately 100 GHz--1:1 THz) spectrometer which uses low loss superconducting microstrip transmission lines and a single-crystal silicon dielectric to integrate all of the components of a diffraction grating spectrometer onto a single chip. We have already successfully evaluated the performance of a prototype Micro-Spec, with spectral resolving power, R=64. Here we present our progress towards developing a higher resolution Micro-Spec, which would enable the first science returns in a balloon flight version of this instrument. We describe modifications to the design in scaling from a R=64 to a R=256 instrument, as well as the ultimate performance limits and design concerns when scaling this instrument to higher resolutions.

We have used the unique far-UV imaging capability offered by a sounding rocket borne instrument to acquire observations of C/2012 S1 (ISON) when its angular separation with respect to the sun was 26.3deg, on 2013 November 20.49. At the time of observation the comet's heliocentric distance and velocity relative to the sun were rh = 0.43 AU and rh_dot = -62.7 km s^-1. Images dominated by C I 1657 A and H I 1216 A were acquired over a 1e6 x 1e6 km^2 region. The water production rate implied by the Lyman alpha observations is constrained to be Q_H2O approximately 8e29 s^-1 while the neutral carbon production rate was Q_C approximately 4e28 s^-1. The radial profile of C I was consistent with it being a dissociation product of a parent molecule with a lifetime approximately 5e4 seconds, favoring a parent other than CO. We constrain the Q_CO production rate to 5(+1.5, -7.5)e28 s^-1 with 1sigma errors derived from photon statistics. The upper limit on the Q_CO/Q_H2O < 6%., 11 pages, 10 figures, Accepted for publication in AJ, 2016-June-17

We have developed a range of techniques useful for constructing analog and digital circuits for operation in a liquid Helium environment (4.2K), using commercially available low power components. The challenges encountered in designing cryogenic electronics include finding components that can function usefully in the cold and possess low enough power dissipation so as not to heat the systems they are designed to measure. From design, test, and integration perspectives it is useful for components to operate similarly at room and cryogenic temperatures; however this is not a necessity. Some of the circuits presented here have been used successfully in the MUSTANG and in the GISMO camera to build a complete digital to analog multiplexer (which will be referred to as the Cryogenic Address Driver board). Many of the circuit elements described are of a more general nature rather than specific to the Cryogenic Address Driver board, and were studied as a part of a more comprehensive approach to addressing a larger set of cryogenic electronic needs.

The simulated Doppler shifts of the solar Mg I Fraunhofer line produced by scattering on the solar light by asteroidal, cometary, and trans-neptunian dust particles are compared with the shifts obtained by Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper (WHAM) spectrometer. The simulated spectra are based on the results of integrations of the orbital evolution of particles under the gravitational influence of planets, the Poynting–Robertson drag, radiation pressure, and solar wind drag. Our results demonstrate that the differences in the line centroid position in the solar elongation and in the line width averaged over the elongations for different sizes of particles are usually less than those for different sources of dust. The deviation of the derived spectral parameters for various sources of dust used in the model reached maximum at the elongation (measured eastward from the Sun) between 90° and 120°. For the future zodiacal light Doppler shifts measurements, it is important to pay a particular attention to observing at this elongation range. At the elongations of the fields observed by WHAM, the model-predicted Doppler shifts were close to each other for several scattering functions considered. Therefore the main conclusions of our paper do not depend on a scattering function and mass distribution of particles if they are reasonable. A comparison of the dependencies of the Doppler shifts on solar elongation and the mean width of the Mg I line modeled for different sources of dust with those obtained from the WHAM observations shows that the fraction of cometary particles in zodiacal dust is significant and can be dominant. Cometary particles originating inside Jupiter's orbit and particles originating beyond Jupiter's orbit (including trans-neptunian dust particles) can contribute to zodiacal dust about 1/3 each, with a possible deviation from 1/3 up to 0.1–0.2. The fraction of asteroidal dust is estimated to be ∼0.3–0.5. The mean eccentricities of zodiacal particles located at 1–2 AU from the Sun that better fit the WHAM observations are between 0.2 and 0.5, with a more probable value of about 0.3.

The 2 mm spectral range provides a unique terrestrial window enabling ground based observations of the earliest active dusty galaxies in the universe and thereby allowing a better constraint on the star formation rate in these objects. We have built GISMO (the Goddard-IRAM Superconducting 2-Millimeter Observer), a 2 mm, 128 element superconducting Transition Edge Sensor (TES) based bolometer camera for the IRAM 30 m telescope in Spain. The camera uses an 8×16 planar array of multiplexed TES bolometers, which incorporates our recently designed Backshort Under Grid (BUG) architecture, described elsewhere. The optical design incorporates a 100 mm (4 inches) diameter silicon lens cooled to 4 K, which provides the required fast beam of 0.9 λ/D. With this spatial sampling, GISMO will be very efficient at detecting sources serendipitously in large sky surveys, while the capability for diffraction-limited observations is preserved. With the background limited performance of the detectors, the camera provides significantly greater imaging sensitivity and mapping speed at this wavelength than has previously been possible. The major scientific driver for the instrument is to provide the IRAM 30 m telescope with the capability to rapidly observe galactic and extragalactic dust emission, in particular from high-z Ultra Luminous Infrared Galaxies (ULIRGs) and quasars, even in the summer season. The instrument will fill in the SEDs of high redshift galaxies at the Rayleigh-Jeans part of the dust emission spectrum, even at the highest redshifts. Our source count models predict that GISMO will serendipitously detect one galaxy every four hours on the blank sky, and that one quarter of these galaxies will be at a redshift of z 6.5. We expect to install GISMO at the 30 m telescope in the second half of 2007.

We have imaged a $\sim$6 arcminute$^2$ region in the Bo\"otes Deep Field using the 350 $\mu$m-optimised second generation Submillimeter High Angular Resolution Camera (SHARC II), achieving a peak 1$\sigma$ sensitivity of $\sim$5 mJy. We detect three sources above 3$\sigma$, and determine a spurious source detection rate of 1.09 in our maps. In the absence of $5\sigma$ detections, we rely on deep 24 $\mu$m and 20 cm imaging to deduce which sources are most likely to be genuine, giving two real sources. From this we derive an integral source count of 0.84$^{+1.39}_{-0.61}$ sources arcmin$^{-2}$ at $S>13$ mJy, which is consistent with 350 $\mu$m source count models that have an IR-luminous galaxy population evolving with redshift. We use these constraints to consider the future for ground-based short-submillimetre surveys.

著者人数: 44名, Accepted: 2006-10-03, 資料番号: SA1000630000

We report the detection of a 3.6sigma 350micron-selected source in the Bootes Deep Field. The source, the first Short-wavelength Submillimeter-selected Galaxy (SSG 1), was discovered as part of a blank field extragalactic survey using the 350micron-optimised Submillimeter High Angular Resolution Camera (SHARC II) at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory. With multiwavelength photometry from NOAO-NDWFS (R and I band), FLAMEX (J and K_s), Spitzer (IRAC and MIPS) and the Westerbork 1.4GHz Deep Survey (radio upper limit), we are able to constrain the photometric redshift using different methods, all of which suggest a redshift of close to 1. In the absence of long-wavelength submillimeter data we use SED templates to infer that this source is an ultraluminous infrared galaxy (ULIRG) with a dust temperature of 30+/-5 K, occupying a region of luminosity-temperature space shared by modarate redshift ISO-selected ULIRGs (rather than high redshift SCUBA-selected SMGs). SHARC II can thus select SMGs with moderately "warm'' dust that might be missed in submillimeter surveys at longer wavelengths.

We describe a comparative investigation of the parameters of MoAu-bilayer TES bolometers designed for infrared detectors. A set of devices with variations in geometry were fabricated at the NASA/GSFC detector development facility. These detectors have different bilayer aspect ratios (providing differing normal state resistances and current densities), and have varieties of normal metal regions to study the effects of geometry on noise. These normal metal regions are oriented either parallel to or transverse to the direction of current flow, or both. The lowest noise detectors are found to have normal metal regions oriented transversely. For about a dozen different devices, we have measured a large set of parameters by means of a suite of tests. These include complex impedance measurements to derive time constants; IV curves to determine resistance and power; thermal conductance measurements; noise measurements as a function of device resistance; and direct resistance vs. temperature measurements.

The development of a large, far-infrared telescope in space has taken on a new urgency with breakthroughs in detector technology and recognition of the fundamental importance of the far-infrared spectral region to questions ranging from cosmology to our own Solar system. The Single Aperture Far-InfraRed (SAFIR) Observatory is 10 m-class far-infrared observatory that would begin development later in this decade to meet these needs. SAFIR's science goals are driven by the fact that youngest stages of almost all phenomena in the universe are shrouded in absorption by and emission from cool dust that emits strongly in the far-infrared, 20 μm–1 mm. Its operating temperature (4 K) and instrument complement would be optimized to reach the natural sky confusion limit in the far-infrared with diffraction-limited performance down to at least the atmospheric cutoff at 40 μm. This would provide a point source sensitivity improvement of several orders of magnitude over that of SIRTF. In order to achieve this, large arrays of detectors with NEPs ranging from a few to a hundred zeptowatts/sqrt(Hz) are needed. Very low temperature superconducting transition edge sensors and far-infrared “photon counting” detectors are critical technologies requiring development for the SAFIR mission.

We present deep continuum observations using the GISMO camera at a wavelength of 2 mm centered on the Hubble Deep Field (HDF) in the GOODS-N field. These are the first deep field observations ever obtained at this wavelength. The 1 sigma sensitivity in the innermost approx. 4 arcminutes of the 7 utes map is approx. 135 uJy/beam, a factor of three higher in flux/beam sensitivity than the deepest available SCUBA 850 um observations, and almost a factor of four higher in flux / beam sensitivity than the combined MAMBO/AzTEC 1.2 mm observations of this region. Our source extraction algorithm identifies 12 sources directly, and another 3 through correlation with known sources at 1.2 mm and 850 um. Five of the directly detected GISMO sources have counterparts in the MAMBO/AzTEC catalog, and four of those also have SCUBA counterparts. HDF850.1, one of the first blank-field detected submillimeter galaxies, is now detected at 2 mm. The median redshift of all sources with counterparts of known redshifts is med(z) = 2.91 +/- 0.94. Statistically, the detections are most likely real for 5 of the seven 2 mm sources without shorter wavelength counterparts, while the probability for none of them being real is negligible.

The Primordial Inflation Polarization Explorer (PIPER) is a balloon-borne cosmic microwave background (CMB) polarimeter designed to search for evidence of inflation by measuring the large-angular scale CMB polarization signal. BICEP2 recently reported a detection of B-mode power corresponding to the tensor-to-scalar ratio r = 0.2 on ~2 degree scales. If the BICEP2 signal is caused by inflationary gravitational waves (IGWs), then there should be a corresponding increase in B-mode power on angular scales larger than 18 degrees. PIPER is currently the only suborbital instrument capable of fully testing and extending the BICEP2 results by measuring the B-mode power spectrum on angular scales $\theta$ = ~0.6 deg to 90 deg, covering both the reionization bump and recombination peak, with sensitivity to measure the tensor-to-scalar ratio down to r = 0.007, and four frequency bands to distinguish foregrounds. PIPER will accomplish this by mapping 85% of the sky in four frequency bands (200, 270, 350, 600 GHz) over a series of 8 conventional balloon flights from the northern and southern hemispheres. The instrument has background-limited sensitivity provided by fully cryogenic (1.5 K) optics focusing the sky signal onto four 32x40-pixel arrays of time-domain multiplexed Transition-Edge Sensor (TES) bolometers held at 140 mK. Polarization sensitivity and systematic control are provided by front-end Variable-delay Polarization Modulators (VPMs), which rapidly modulate only the polarized sky signal at 3 Hz and allow PIPER to instantaneously measure the full Stokes vector (I, Q, U, V) for each pointing. We describe the PIPER instrument and progress towards its first flight., Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures. To be published in Proceedings of SPIE Volume 9153. Presented at SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation 2014, conference 9153

High-performance, integrated spectrometers operating in the far-infrared and sub-millimeter promise to be powerful tools for the exploration of the epochs of reionization and initial galaxy formation. These devices, using high-efficiency superconducting transmission lines, can achieve the performance of a meter-scale grating spectrometer in an instrument implemented on a four-inch silicon wafer. Such a device, when combined with a cryogenic telescope in space, provides an enabling capability for studies of the early universe. Here, the optical design process for Micro-Spec (mu-Spec) is presented, with particular attention given to its two-dimensional diffractive region, where the light of different wavelengths is focused on the different detectors. The method is based on the stigmatization and minimization of the light path function in this bounded region, which results in an optimized geometrical configuration. A point design with an efficiency of approx. 90% has been developed for initial demonstration, and can serve as the basis for future instruments. Design variations on this implementation are also discussed, which can lead to lower efficiencies due to diffractive losses in the multimode region.

We discuss the utility of a low-resolution prism as a component of a multiobject spectrometer for NASA's proposed Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST). Low-resolution prism spectroscopy permits simultaneous observation of the 0.6-5 μm wavelength regime at R 50. Such data can take advantage of modern techniques in spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting to determine source redshifts, sometimes called "photometric redshifts." We compare simulated prism observations with filter imaging for this purpose with NGST. Low-resolution prism observations of galaxy SEDs provide a significant advantage over multifilter observations for any realistic observing strategy. For an ideal prism in sky background-limited observing, the prism has a signal-to-noise ratio advantage of the square root of the resolution over serial observations by filters with similar spatial and spectral resolution in equal integration time. For a realistic case the advantage is slightly less, and we have performed extensive simulations to quantify it. We define strict criteria for the recovery of input redshifts, such that to be considered a success, redshift residuals must be δz 30) objects at high redshift (z > 4), where the prism recovers 80% of redshifts, while the filters recover barely 35% to similar accuracy. The primary discovery space of NGST will be at the faintest magnitudes and the highest redshifts. Many important objects will be too faint for follow-up at higher spectral resolution, so prism observations are the optimal technique to study them. Prism observations also reduce the contamination of high-redshift samples by lower redshift interlopers.

Upcoming major NASA missions such as the Einstein Inflation Probe and the Single Aperture Far-Infrared Observatory will require arrays of detectors with thousands of background-limited elements sensitive to wavelengths from ∼ 50 μ m to ∼ 3 mm . Because of the low power levels present in space with cryogenic telescopes, these detectors will likely operate at temperatures below 100 mK. In order to make rapid progress on detector development, the cryogenic testing cycle must be made convenient and quick. We have developed a cryogenic detector characterization system capable of testing superconducting detector arrays in formats up to 8 × 32 , read out by SQUID multiplexers. The system relies on the cooling of a two-stage adiabatic demagnetization refrigerator immersed in a liquid helium bath. This approach permits a detector to be cooled from 300 K to 50 mK in under 6 h, so that a test cycle begun in the morning will be over by the end of the day. The system is modular, with two identical immersible units, so that while one unit is cooling, the second can be reconfigured for the next battery of tests.

With the goal of making high-sensitivity bolometers for low-background measurements in the far-infrared or submillimeter, we have made small silicon thermistors, which act as hot-electron bolometers, with integrated single-electron transistors for readout amplifiers. Semiconductors doped just below a metal–insulator transition can make highly sensitive thermistors that have been used as thermometers in X-ray microcalorimeters and FIR bolometer arrays. In such arrays, thermal isolation is engineered by supporting the absorber and thermometer on a membrane. However, electron–phonon decoupling in doped silicon can be made the dominant thermal isolation by reducing device volume, potentially allowing a smaller thermal conductance and a more sensitive bolometer. A key feature is that, while its DC resistance is very high, the thermistor's surface impedance at terahertz frequencies is conveniently low, making feasible efficient antenna coupling of radiation into the electron system. Radio-frequency single-electron transistors integrated with the thermistors have sufficiently low input capacitance to offer high-speed readout of the high impedance detectors.

The Submillimeter High Angular Resolution Camera (SHARC-II) is a facility instrument for far-infrared (350 μm) imaging at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory (CSO). With 384 pixels, SHARC-II uses the world's largest bolometer array for astronomical observations. SHARC-II is most efficiently utilized for observations of extended sources and for deep sky surveys. The low 1/ f detector noise allows total power measurements without the need to observe an emission free “off position”. This is possible because the sky emission can be distinguished from the celestial emission when the array scans over the sky at sufficient speed. Here we present a representative set of SHARC-II observations, which highlight the capabilities of the instrument. The observations show the submillimeter continuum emission from our own Galactic center, the nearby galaxy M51, and the gravitationally lensed high- z Cloverleaf galaxy H1413+1143.

The Primordial Inflation Explorer (PIXIE) is an Explorer-class mission to map the absolute intensity and linear polarization of the cosmic microwave background and diffuse astrophysical foregrounds over the full sky from frequencies 30 GHz to 6 THz (I cm to 50 I-tm wavelength). PIXIE uses a polarizing Michelson interferometer with 2.7 K optics to measure the difference spectrum between two orthogonal linear polarizations from two co-aligned beams. Either input can view either the sky or a temperature-controlled absolute reference blackbody calibrator. The multimoded optics and high etendu provide sensitivity comparable to kilo-pixel focal plane arrays, but with greatly expanded frequency coverage while using only 4 detectors total. PIXIE builds on the highly successful COBEIFIRAS design by adding large-area polarization-sensitive detectors whose fully symmetric optics are maintained in thermal equilibrium with the CMB. The highly symmetric nulled design provides redundant rejection of major sources of systematic uncertainty. The principal science goal is the detection and characterization of linear polarization from an inflationary epoch in the early universe, with tensor-to-scalar ratio r much less than 10(exp -3). PIXIE will also return a rich data set constraining physical processes ranging from Big Bang cosmology, reionization, and large-scale structure to the local interstellar medium. Keywords: cosmic microwave background, polarization, FTS, bolometer

We have fabricated absorber-coupled microwave kinetic inductance detector (MKID) arrays for sub-millimeter and far-infrared astronomy. Each detector array is comprised of lambda/2 stepped impedance resonators, a 1.5 micrometer thick silicon membrane, and 380 micrometer thick silicon walls. The resonators consist of parallel plate aluminum transmission lines coupled to low impedance Nb microstrip traces of variable length, which set the resonant frequency of each resonator. This allows for multiplexed microwave readout and, consequently, good spatial discrimination between pixels in the array. The Al transmission lines simultaneously act to absorb optical power and are designed to have a surface impedance and filling fraction so as to match the impedance of free space. Our novel fabrication techniques demonstrate high fabrication yield of MKID arrays on large single crystal membranes and sub-micron front-to-back alignment of the microstrip circuit.

We are constructing the Primordial Inflation Polarization Explorer (PIPER) to measure the polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and search for the imprint of gravity waves produced during an inflationary epoch in the early universe. The signal is faint and lies behind confusing foregrounds, both astrophysical and cosmological, and so many detectors are required to complete the measurement in a limited time. We will use four of our matured 1,280 pixel, high-filling-factor backshort-under-grid bolometer arrays for efficient operation at the PIPER CMB wavelengths. All four arrays observe at a common wavelength set by passband filters in the optical path. PIPER will fly four times to observe at wavelengths of 1500, 1100, 850, and 500 microns in order to separate CMB from foreground emission. The arrays employ leg-isolated superconducting transition edge sensor bolometers operated at 145 mK; tuned resonant backshorts for efficient optical coupling; and a second-generation superconducting quantum interference device multiplexer readout. We describe the design, development, and performance of PIPER bolometer array technology to achieve background-limited sensitivity for a cryogenic balloon-borne telescope.

We describe our ongoing project to build a far-infrared polarimeter for the HAWC instrument on SOFIA. Far-IR polarimetry reveals unique information about magnetic fields in dusty molecular clouds and is an important tool for understanding star formation and cloud evolution. SOFIA provides flexible access to the infrared as well as good sensitivity to and angular resolution of continuum emission from molecular clouds. We are making progress toward outfitting HAWC, a first-generation SOFIA camera, with a four-band polarimeter covering 50 to 220 microns wavelength. We have chosen a conservative design which uses quartz half-wave plates continuously rotating at ~0.5 Hz, ball bearing suspensions, fixed wire-grid polarizers, and cryogenic motors. Design challenges are to fit the polarimeter into a volume that did not originally envision one, to minimize the heating of the cryogenic optics, and to produce negligible interference in the detector system. Here we describe the performance of the polarimeter measured at cryogenic temperature as well as the basic method we intend for data analysis. We are on track for delivering this instrument early in the operating lifetime of SOFIA.

We have designed, fabricated, and tested compact radiative control structures, including antireflection coatings and resonant absorbers, for millimeter through submillimeter wave astronomy. The antireflection coatings consist of micromachined single crystal silicon dielectric sub-wavelength honeycombs. The effective dielectric constant of the structures is set by the honeycomb cell geometry. The resonant absorbers consist of pieces of solid single crystal silicon substrate and thin phosphorus implanted regions whose sheet resistance is tailored to maximize absorption by the structure. We present an implantation model that can be used to predict the ion energy and dose required for obtaining a target implant layer sheet resistance. A neutral density filter, a hybrid of a silicon dielectric honeycomb with an implanted region, has also been fabricated with this basic approach. These radiative control structures are scalable and compatible for use large focal plane detector arrays.

Far-infrared bolometric detectors are used extensively in ground-based and space-borne astronomy, and thus it is important to understand their optical behavior precisely. We have studied the intensity and polarization response of free-space bolometers and shown that when the size of the absorber is reduced below a wavelength, the response changes from being that of a classical optical detector to that of a few-mode antenna. We have calculated the modal content of the reception patterns and found that for any volumetric detector having a side length of less than a wavelength, three magnetic and three electric dipoles characterize the behavior. The size of the absorber merely determines the relative strengths of the contributions. The same formalism can be applied to thin-film absorbers, where the induced current is forced to flow in a plane. In this case, one magnetic and two electric dipoles characterize the behavior. The ability to model easily the intensity, polarization, and straylight characteristics of electrically small detectors will be of great value when designing high-performance polarimetric imaging arrays.

Motivated by the need for improved resolution in Compton scattering experiments performed with high energy X-rays, we have developed a high resolution spectrometer. We have adapted calorimetric X-ray detectors, produced at Goddard Space Flight Center for X-rays around 6 keV, to Compton scattering research using synchrotron radiation near 40 keV. Such a detector is operated below 0.1 K and determines X-ray energies by measuring the temperature increase which results from the absorption of a single X-ray photon. We have investigated a number of materials as candidates for the overlayer which is affixed to a device in order to absorb the X-rays and transfer their energy to phonons. Using Sn absorbers, we have achieved a resolution of 90 eV at 32 keV. The apparatus was brought to a wiggler beam line at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, where we were able to measure Compton profiles of Si for the (100) and (111) directions. The difference reproduced the previously measured anisotropy, but the measurement was limited by the low number of total counts and by a degradation in resolution experienced during operation at the synchrotron. This experiment illustrates the feasibility of using such a system for Compton scattering research. We expect that future improvements to the detectors and to the supporting apparatus will make higher resolution measurements possible.

We present constraints on the nature of the first galaxies selected at 350 μm. The sample includes galaxies discovered in the deepest blank-field survey at 350 μm (in the Bootes Deep Field) and also later serendipitous detections in the Lockman Hole. In determining multiwavelength identifications, the 350 μm position and map resolution of the second generation Submillimeter High Angular Resolution Camera are critical, especially in the cases where multiple radio sources exist and the 24 μm counterparts are unresolved. Spectral energy distribution templates are fitted to identified counterparts, and the sample is found to comprise IR-luminous galaxies at 1 < z < 3 predominantly powered by star formation. The first spectrum of a 350 μm selected galaxy provides an additional confirmation, showing prominent dust grain features typically associated with star-forming galaxies. Compared to submillimeter galaxies selected at 850 and 1100 μm, galaxies selected at 350 μm have a similar range of far-infrared color temperatures. However, no 350 μm selected sources are reliably detected at 850 or 1100 μm. Galaxies in our sample with redshifts 1 < z < 2 show a tight correlation between the far- and mid-infrared flux densities, but galaxies at higher redshifts show a large dispersion in their mid- to far-infrared colors. This implies a limit to which the mid-IR emission traces the far-IR emission in star-forming galaxies. The 350 μm flux densities (15 < S 350 < 40 mJy) place these objects near the Herschel/SPIRE 350 μm confusion threshold, with the lower limit on the star formation rate density suggesting the bulk of the 350 μm contribution will come from less luminous infrared sources and normal galaxies. Therefore, the nature of the dominant source of the 350 μm background—star-forming galaxies in the epoch of peak star formation in the universe—could be more effectively probed using ground-based instruments with their angular resolution and sensitivity offering significant advantages over space-based imaging.

In October 2008, for the second time we demonstrated a monolithic Backshort Under Grid (BUG) 8×16 TES array in the field using our 2 mm wavelength imager GISMO (Goddard IRAM Superconducting 2 Millimeter Observer) at the IRAM 30 m telescope in Spain. We present astronomical results from this observing run together with a discussion of the instrument performance.

In November of 2007 we demonstrated a monolithic Backshort-Under-Grid (BUG) 8x16 array in the field using our 2 mm wavelength imager GISMO (Goddard IRAM Superconducting 2 Millimeter Observer) at the IRAM 30 m telescope in Spain for astronomical observations. The 2 mm spectral range provides a unique terrestrial window enabling ground-based observations of the earliest active dusty galaxies in the universe and thereby allowing a better constraint on the star formation rate in these objects. The optical design incorporates a 100 mm diameter silicon lens cooled to 4 K, which provides the required fast beam yielding 0.9 lambda/D pixels. With this spatial sampling, GISMO will be very efficient at detecting sources serendipitously in large sky surveys, while the capability for diffraction limited imaging is preserved. The camera provides significantly greater detection sensitivity and mapping speed at this wavelength than has previously been possible. The instrument will fill in the spectral energy distribution of high redshift galaxies at the Rayleigh-Jeans part of the dust emission spectrum, even at the highest redshifts. Here1 will we present early results from our observing run with the first fielded BUG bolometer array. We have developed key technologies to enable highly versatile, kilopixel, infrared through millimeter wavelength bolometer arrays. The Backshort-Under-Grid (BUG) array consists of three components: 1) a transition-edge-sensor (TES) based bolometer array with background-limited sensitivity and high filling factor, 2) a quarter-wave reflective backshort grid providing high optical efficiency, and 3) a superconducting bump-bonded large format Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID) multiplexer readout. The array is described in more detail elsewhere (Allen et al., this conference). In November of 2007 we demonstrated a monolithic 8x 16 array with 2 mm-pitch detectors in the field using our 2 mm wavelength imager GISMO (Goddard IRAM Superconducting 2 Millimeter Observer) at the IRAM 30 m telescope in Spain for astronomical observations. The 2 mm spectral range provides a unique terrestrial window enabling ground-based observations of the earliest active dusty galaxies in the universe and thereby allowing a better constraint on the star formation rate in these objects. The optical design incorporates a 100 mm diameter silicon lens cooled to 4 K, which provides the required fast beam yielding 0.9 lambda1D pixels. With this spatial sampling, GISMO will be very efficient at detecting sources serendipitously in large sky surveys, while the capability for diffraction limited imaging is preserved. The camera provides significantly greater detection sensitivity and mapping speed at this wavelength than has previously been possible. The instrument will fill in the spectral energy distribution of high redshift galaxies at the Rayleigh-Jeans part of the dust emission spectrum, even at the highest redshifts. Here I will we present early results from our observing run with the first fielded BUG bolometer array.

We present first results of Hertz/VPM, the first submillimeter polarimeter employing the dual Variable-delay Polarization Modulator (dual-VPM). This device differs from previously used polarization modulators in that it operates in translation rather than mechanical rotation. We discuss the basic theory behind this device, and its potential advantages over the commonly used half wave plate (HWP). The dual-VPM was tested both at the Submillimeter Telescope Observatory (SMTO) and in the lab. In each case we present a detailed description of the setup. We discovered nonideal behavior in the system. This is at least in part due to properties of the VPM wire grids (diameter, spacing) employed in our experiment. Despite this, we found that the dual-VPM system is robust, operating with high efficiency and low instrumental polarization. This device is well suited for air and space-borne applications., Comment: 31 pages, 11 figures, 2 tables

One of the James Webb Space Telescope's (JWST) primary science goals is to characterize the epoch of galaxy formation in the universe and observe the first galaxies and clusters of galaxies. This goal requires multi-band imaging and spectroscopic data in the near infrared portion of the spectrum for large numbers of very faint galaxies. Because such objects are sparse on the sky at the JWST resolution, a multi-object spectrograph is necessary to efficiently carry out the required observations. We have developed a fully programmable array of microshutters that will be used as the field selector for the multi-object Near Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) on JWST. This device allows apertures to be opened at the locations of selected galaxies in the field of view while blocking other unwanted light from the sky background and bright sources. In practice, greater than 100 objects within the field of view can be observed simultaneously. This field selection capability greatly improves the sensitivity and efficiency of NIRSpec. In this paper, we describe the microshutter arrays, their development, characteristics, fabrication, testing, and progress toward delivery of a flight-qualified field selection subsystem to the NIRSpec instrument team.

We are developing a kilopixel, filled bolometer array for infrared astronomy. The array consists of three individual components, to be merged into a single, working unit; 1) a transition edge sensor (TES) bolometer array, operating in the milliKelvin regime, 2) quarter-wave resonance backshorts, and 3) superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) multiplexer readout. The detector array is a filled, square-grid of suspended, silicon membrane bolometers with superconducting thermistors. The spacing of the backshort beneath the detector grid can be set from ~30-300 microns by adjusting two process parameters during fabrication. We have produced prototype, monolithic arrays having 1 mm and 2 mm pitch detectors. The key technologies required for kilopixel arrays of detectors to be hybridized to SQUID multiplexer readout circuits have been demonstrated. Mechanical models of large-format detector grids have been indium bump-bonded to dummy multiplexer readouts to study electrical continuity. A monolithic array of 1 mm pitch detectors has been mated to a backshort grid optimized for a 350 micron resonant wavelength. Through-wafer microvias, for electroplated, low-resistance electrical connection of detector elements, have been prototyped using deep reactive ion etching. The ultimate goal of this work is to develop large-format (thousands of pixels) bolometer array architecture with background-limited sensitivity, suitable for a wide range of long wavelengths and a wide range of astronomical applications such as imaging, spectroscopy, and polarimetry and applicable for ground-based, suborbital, and space-based instruments.

Filled arrays of bolometers are currently being employed for use in astronomy from the far-infrared through millimeter parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. Because of the large range of wavelengths for which such detectors are applicable, the number of modes supported by a pixel will vary according to the specific application of a given available technology. We study the dependence of image fidelity and induced polarization on the size of the pixel by employing a formalism in which diffraction due to the pixel boundary is treated by propagating the second-order statistical correlations of the radiation field through a model optical system. We construct polarized beam pattern images of square pixels for various ratios of p/\lambda where p is the pixel size and \lambda is the wavelength of the radiation under consideration. For the limit in which few modes are supported by the pixel (p/\lambda1), the geometric limit is approached as expected. This technique gives a quantitative approach to optimize the imaging properties of arrays of planar detectors in the few-mode limit., Comment: 20 pages, 8 figures

We present images taken with the first deployed astronomical instrument to use multiplexed superconducting bolometers. The Fabry-Perot Interferometer Bolometer Research Experiment (FIBRE), a broadband submillimeter spectrometer, took these images as a detector investigation at the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory (CSO). FIBRE's detectors are superconducting bilayer transition edge sensor (TES) bolometers read out by a SQUID multiplexer. An order-sorted Fabry-Perot provides illumination of a 16-element linear bolometer array, resulting in five orders at a spectral resolution of around 1200 covering the 350 micron atmospheric band. We present multiwavelength images of Jupiter, Venus and the high-mass star-forming region G34.3+0.2 taken with this instrument at several wavelengths in the 350 micron band, separated by approximately 8 microns. These images have validated the use of multiplexed superconducting bolometers in an astronomical application and have helped inform the design of our future instruments.

We are developing a large-format, versatile, bolometer array for a wide range of infrared through millimeter astronomical applications. The array design consists of three key components - superconducting transition edge sensor bolometer arrays, quarter-wave reflective backshort grids, and Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID) multiplexer readouts. The detector array is a filled, square grid of bolometers with superconducting sensors. The backshort arrays are fabricated separately and are positioned in the etch cavities behind the detector grid. The grids have unique three-dimensional interlocking features micromachined into the walls for positioning and mechanical stability. The ultimate goal of the program is to produce large-format arrays with background-limited sensitivity, suitable for a wide range of wavelengths and applications. Large-format (kilopixel) arrays will be directly indium bump bonded to a SQUID multiplexer circuit. We have produced and tested 8×8 arrays of 1 mm detectors to demonstrate proof of concept. 8×16 arrays of 2 mm detectors are being produced for a new Goddard Space Flight Center instrument. We have also produced models of a kilopixel detector grid and dummy multiplexer chip for bump bonding development. We present detector design overview, several unique fabrication highlights, and assembly technologies.

We are building a bolometer camera (the Goddard-Iram Superconducting 2-Millimeter Observer, GISMO) for operation in the 2 mm atmospheric window to be used at the IRAM 30 m telescope. The instrument uses a 8x16 planar array of multiplexed TES bolometers which incorporates our newly designed Backshort Under Grid (BUG) architecture. Due to the size and sensitivity of the detector array (the NEP of the detectors is 4×10-17 W/√Hz), this instrument will be unique in that it will be capable of providing significantly greater imaging sensitivity and mapping speed at this wavelength than has previously been possible. The major scientific driver for this instrument is to provide the IRAM 30 m telescope with the capability to rapidly observe galactic and extragalactic dust emission, in particular from high-z ULIRGs and quasars, even in the summer season. The 2 mm spectral range provides a unique window to observe the earliest active dusty galaxies in the universe and is well suited to better confine the star formation rate in these objects. The instrument will fill in the SEDs of high redshift galaxies at the Rayleigh-Jeans part of the dust emission spectrum, even at the highest redshifts. The observational efficiency of a 2 mm camera with respect to bolometer cameras operating at shorter wavelengths increases for objects at redshifts beyond z ~ 1 and is most efficient at the highest redshifts, at the time when the first stars were re-ionizing the universe. Our models predict that at this wavelength one out of four serendipitously detected galaxies will be at a redshift of z > 6.5.

We report on methods to minimize thermally-induced deformation in a MEMS-based reconfigurable aperture. The device is an enabling component of the Near-Infrared Spectrometer, a principle instrument on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. The Microshutter Array consists of 384x175 individually addressable shutters which can be magnetically rotated 90° into the plane of the array and electrostatically latched open. Each shutter is a 100x200 μm rectangular membrane suspended by a small neck region and torsion flexure. The primary materials in the shutter are a 5000a Si3N4 layer for mechanical rigidity, 2000a Al for opacity and electrostatic latching, and 2200a Co90Fe10 for magnetic actuation. This multi-layer stack presents a challenge due to the operating temperatures required for the device: both room temperature (300K) and cryogenic temperature (30K). Thermal expansion of the materials causes the shutters to bow out of plane excessively, which can prevent actuation of the shutters, cause damage to portions of the array, and allow light leakage around closed shutters. Here we present our investigation of several methods to prevent microshutter bowing including deposition of additional materials on the shutters to create a symmetrical layer stack and replacing the current stack with low-coefficient of thermal expansion materials. Using shutter-size suspended cantilever beams as a rapid-development test bed, we have reduced out-of-plane bowing between 300K and 30K to 10% or better. We are currently applying these results to microshutter arrays to develop shutters that remain flat from room temperature to cryogenic temperature while retaining the required mechanical, optical, and magnetic properties.