1. Development of a hard x-ray polarimeter for solar flares and gamma-ray bursts
- Author
-
McConnell, M.L., Forrest, D.J., Macri, J., McClish, M., Osgood, M., Ryan, J.M., Vestrand, W.T., and Zanes, C.
- Subjects
Polarization (Nuclear physics) -- Measurement ,Nuclear research -- Equipment and supplies ,Compton effect -- Analysis ,Business ,Electronics ,Electronics and electrical industries - Abstract
We describe recent work on the development of a Compton scatter polarimeter for measuring the polarization of hard X-rays (100-300 keV) from astrophysical sources. Results from measurements with a laboratory prototype are summarized, along with comparisons to Monte Carlo simulations. We also present our latest design concept, which envisions a complete polarimeter module on the front end of a 5-inch position-sensitive PMT Although the emphasis of our development effort is towards measuring hard X-rays from solar flares, our latest design has the advantage that it is sensitive over a rather large field-of-view (> 1 steradian), a feature that makes the design especially attractive for [Gamma]-ray burst studies.
- Published
- 1998