0000000000116419
AUTHOR
Salvatore Varisco
The X-Ray Telescope (XRT) for the Hinode Mission
著者人数：29名
Fabrication of Bismuth Absorber Arrays for NTD-Ge Hard X-ray Microcalorimeters
The high-spectral-resolution detection of hard X-rays (E > 20 keV) is a challenging and nearly unexplored area in space astrophysics. Traditionally hard X-ray detectors present moderate spectral resolutions, although few tens of eV one could open new frontiers in the study of nuclear processes and high-temperature plasma dynamics in energetic processes. This can be achieved by using cryogenic microcalorimeters. Within a research activity aimed at developing arrays of neutron transmutation-doped germanium (NTD-Ge) microcalorimeters for the high-spectral-resolution detection (about 50 eV@60 keV) of hard X-rays (20 keV < E<100 keV), we developed an electroplating process to fabricate …
Test of x-ray microcalorimeters with bilayer absorbers
Superconducting absorbers for thermal X-ray microcalorimeters should convert into thermalized phonons and transfer to the thermal sensor most of the energy deposited by single photons, on a time scale as short as a few tens of microseconds. Since deposition of X-ray energy in a superconductor produces quasiparticles by breaking up of Cooper pairs, the thermalization efficiency depends on the time scale on which they survive within the absorber volume, trapping part of the absorbed energy. According to the predicted values of their microscopic parameters, in many standard type-I superconducting metals the quasiparticle life time at very low temperatures results too long to allow for recombin…
Carbon nanotubes thin filters for x-ray detectors in space
In this paper, we present the first results from an investigation performed on nanometric thin pellicles based on carbon nanotubes (CNT) of potential interest for manufacturing large area optical blocking filters to protect soft X-ray detectors in astrophysics space missions. In order to evaluate the effective capability of such materials to block UV/VIS/IR radiation, while being highly transparent in the soft X-rays and strong enough to withstand the severe launch stresses, we have performed a suite of characterization measurements. These include: UV/VIS/IR and X-ray absorption spectroscopy, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy on bare and Al coated small self-…
Realization and drive tests of active thin glass x-ray mirrors
A technique to obtain lightweight and high-resolution focusing mirror segments for large aperture X-ray telescopes is the hot slumping of thin glass foils. In this approach, already successfully experimented to manufacture the optics of the NuSTAR X-ray telescope, thin glasses are formed at high temperature onto a precisely figured mould. The formed glass foils are subsequently stacked onto a stiff backplane with a common axis and focus to form an XOU (X-ray Optical Unit), to be later integrated in the telescope optic structure. In this process, the low thickness of the glass foils guarantees a low specific mass and a very low obstruction of the effective area. However, thin glasses are sub…
The Space Weather X-Ray spectrometer for the Helianthus sub-L1 mission with solar photonic propulsion
Copyright 2022 Society of Photo‑Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). One print or electronic copy may be made for personal use only. Systematic reproduction and distribution, duplication of any material in this publication for a fee or for commercial purposes, and modification of the contents of the publication are prohibited. Helianthus is a phase A study of a space weather station with solar photonic propulsion. The scientific payload will be made of: an X-ray spectrometer to detect solar flares; SailCor, a coronagraph with a wide field of view; a plasma analyzer; a magnetometer. The maximum allowed mass for the entire scientific payload shall not exceed 5 kg. The two imaging devices…
Study and implementation of a soft X-ray 100 eV -20 keV fixed exit monochromator system
We describe a “built in house” X-ray monochromator which produces a fixed exit X-ray beam tunable in the full energy range 0.1 - 20 keV. The system is based on a double diffraction on two large size parallel crystals positioned using a remotely controlled micropositioning system in order to keep the position of the monochromatic beam for any chosen energy. Up to six different diffracting elements can be selected without breaking the vacuum. This allows to cover the full energy range of interest. The system is part of an upgrading project of the XACT facility at the Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica - Osservatorio Astronomico di Palermo G.S. Vaiana, and will be employed for the testing and c…
Manufacturing an active X-ray mirror prototype in thin glass
Adjustable mirrors equipped with piezo actuators are commonly used at synchrotron and free-electron laser (FEL) beamlines, in order to optimize their focusing properties and sometimes to shape the intensity distribution of the focal spot with the desired profile. Unlike them, X-ray mirrors for astronomy are much thinner in order to enable nesting and reduce the areal mass, and the application of piezo actuators acting normally to the surface appears much more difficult. There remains the possibility to correct the deformations using thin patches that exert a tangential strain on the rear side of the mirror: some research groups are already at work on this approach. The technique reported he…
Calibration of the SphinX experiment at the XACT facility in Palermo
Three of the four detectors of the SphinX experiment to be flown on the Russian mission Coronas-Photon have been measured at the XACT Facility of the Palermo Observatory at several wavelengths in the soft X-ray band. We describe the instrumental set-up and report some measurements. The analysis work to obtain the final calibration is still in progress.
Manufacturing and testing a thin glass mirror shell with piezoelectric active control
Optics for future X-ray telescopes will be characterized by very large aperture and focal length, and will be made of lightweight materials like glass or silicon in order to keep the total mass within acceptable limits. Optical modules based on thin slumped glass foils are being developed at various institutes, aiming at improving the angular resolution to a few arcsec HEW. Thin mirrors are prone to deform, so they require a careful integration to avoid deformations and even correct forming errors. On the other hand, this offers the opportunity to actively correct the residual deformation: a viable possibility to improve the mirror figure is the application of piezoelectric actuators onto t…
The Athena X-ray Integral Field Unit: a consolidated design for the system requirement review of the preliminary definition phase
The Athena X-ray Integral Unit (X-IFU) is the high resolution X-ray spectrometer, studied since 2015 for flying in the mid-30s on the Athena space X-ray Observatory, a versatile observatory designed to address the Hot and Energetic Universe science theme, selected in November 2013 by the Survey Science Committee. Based on a large format array of Transition Edge Sensors (TES), it aims to provide spatially resolved X-ray spectroscopy, with a spectral resolution of 2.5 eV (up to 7 keV) over an hexagonal field of view of 5 arc minutes (equivalent diameter). The X-IFU entered its System Requirement Review (SRR) in June 2022, at about the same time when ESA called for an overall X-IFU redesign (i…