0000000000530482
AUTHOR
Roland Diehl
SPI/INTEGRAL in-flight performance
The SPI instrument has been launched on-board the INTEGRAL observatory on October 17, 2002. SPI is a spectrometer devoted to the sky observation in the 20 keV-8 MeV energy range using 19 germanium detectors. The performance of the cryogenic system is nominal and allows to cool the 19 kg of germanium down to 85 K with a comfortable margin. The energy resolution of the whole camera is 2.5 keV at 1.1 MeV. This resolution degrades with time due to particle irradiation in space. We show that the annealing process allows the recovery of the initial performance. The anticoincidence shield works as expected, with a low threshold at 75 keV, reducing the GeD background by a factor of 20. The digital …
The e-ASTROGAM gamma-ray space observatory for the multimessenger astronomy of the 2030s
e-ASTROGAM is a concept for a breakthrough observatory space mission carrying a gamma-ray telescope dedicated to the study of the non-thermal Universe in the photon energy range from 0.15 MeV to 3 GeV. The lower energy limit can be pushed down to energies as low as 30 keV for gamma-ray burst detection with the calorimeter. The mission is based on an advanced space-proven detector technology, with unprecedented sensitivity, angular and energy resolution, combined with remarkable polarimetric capability. Thanks to its performance in the MeV-GeV domain, substantially improving its predecessors, e-ASTROGAM will open a new window on the non-thermal Universe, making pioneering observations of the…
B-MINE, the balloon-borne microcalorimeter nuclear line explorer
B-MINE is a concept for a balloon mission designed to probe the deepest regions of a supernova explosion by detecting Ti-44 emission at 68 keV with spatial and spectral resolutions that are sufficient to determine the extent and velocity distribution of the Ti-44 emitting region. The payload introduces the concept of focusing optics and microcalorimeter spectroscopy to nuclear line emission astrophysics. B-MINE has a thin, plastic foil telescope multilayered to maximize the reflectivity in a 20 keV band centered at 68 keV and a microcalorimeter array optimized for the same energy band. This combination provides a reduced background, an energy resolution of 50 eV and a 3sigma sensitivity in …
The INTEGRAL experiment
The International Gamma-ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL) is conceived as the next logical step in gamma-ray astronomy after the US Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory (CGRO) and the French/Russian SIGMA mission. The INTEGRAL scientific payload consists of two main instruments (Imager and Spectrometer) and two monitor instruments (X-Ray Monitor and Optical Transient Camera). The INTEGRAL spectrometer "SPI" is optimized for detailed measurements of gamma-ray lines and mapping of diffuse sources. It combines a coded aperture mask with an array of large volume, high-purity germanium detectors. The detectors make precise measurements of the gamma-ray energies over the 20 keV-8 MeV energy range. …
SPI/INTEGRAL observation of the Cygnus region
We present the analysis of the first observations of the Cygnus region by the SPI spectrometer onboard the Integral Gamma Ray Observatory, encompassing ${\sim}$ 600 ks of data. Three sources namely Cyg X-1, Cyg X-3 and EXO 2030+375 were clearly detected. Our data illustrate the temporal variability of Cyg X-1 in the energy range from 20 keV to 300 keV. The spectral analysis shows a remarkable stability of the Cyg X-1 spectra when averaged over one day timescale. The other goal of these observations is SPI inflight calibration and performance verification. The latest objective has been achieved as demonstrated by the results presented in this paper.
High Energy, High Resolution X-Ray Spectroscopy: Microcalorimeters For Nuclear Line Astrophysics
We introduce focusing optics and microcalorimeter spectroscopy to nuclear line emission astrophysics with a balloon payload concept called, B‐MINE. It is designed to probe the deepest regions of a supernova explosion by detecting 44Ti emission at 68 keV with spatial and spectral resolutions that are sufficient to determine the velocity distribution of the 44Ti emitting region. B‐MINE has a thin plastic foil telescope multilayered to maximize the reflectivity in a 20 keV band centered at 68 keV and a microcalorimeter array optimized for the same energy band. This combination provides a reduced background, an energy resolution of 50 eV and a 3σ sensitivity in 106 s of 6 × 10−8 ph cm−2 s−1 at …
Imaging test setup for the coded-mask /spl gamma/-ray spectrometer SPI
The European Space Agency's International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL) will be launched in 2002. One of its two main instruments is the spectrometer SPI. It uses 19 HPGe detectors to observe the sky in the energy range of 20 keV to 8 MeV with a resolution of /spl Delta/E/E/spl ap/0.2%. Directional information is obtained using a coded mask. The expected angular resolution is about 20, The SPI imaging test setup (SPITS) was built at the Max-Planck-Institut fur Extraterrestische Physik, Germany, to allow experimental verification of the imaging properties of SPI. SPITS consists of a coded hexagonal uniformly redundant array (HURA) mask and two germanium detectors. The mask is …
SPI: The spectrometer aboard INTEGRAL
SPI is a high spectral resolution gamma-ray telescope on board the ESA mission INTEGRAL (International Gamma Ray Astrophysics Laboratory). It consists of an array of 19 closely packed germanium detectors surrounded by an active anticoincidence shield of BGO. The imaging capabilities of the instrument are obtained with a tungsten coded aperture mask located 1.7 m from the Ge array. The fully coded field-of-view is 16º, the partially coded field of view amounts to 31º, and the angular resolution is 2.5º. The energy range extends from 20 keV to 8 MeV with a typical energy resolution of 2.5 keV at 1.3 MeV. Here we present the general concept of the instrument followed by a brief description of …