Toward large-area sub-arcsecond x-ray telescopes II
Author(s)
Heilmann, Ralf K
Chalifoux, Brandon David
Schattenburg, Mark Lee
Date Issued
October 2016
Journal
Proceedings Volume 9965, Adaptive X-Ray Optics IV
Publisher
SPIE
Citation
O’Dell, Stephen L., et al. "Toward Large-Area Sub-Arcsecond x-Ray Telescopes II." Proceedings Volume 9965, Adaptive X-Ray Optics IV, 28 August - 1 September, 2016, San Diego, California, edited by Stephen L. O’Dell and Ali M. Khounsary, SPIE, 2016, p. 996507.
Version
Final published version
Abstract
In order to advance significantly scientific objectives, future x-ray astronomy missions will likely call for x-ray telescopes with large aperture areas (≈3 m[superscript 2]) and fine angular resolution (≈1[superscript 2 ]). Achieving such performance is programmatically and technologically challenging due to the mass and envelope constraints of space-borne telescopes and to the need for densely nested grazing-incidence optics. Such an x-ray telescope will require precision fabrication, alignment, mounting, and assembly of large areas (≈600 m2) of lightweight (≈2 kg/m[superscript 2] areal density) high-quality mirrors, at an acceptable cost (≈1 M$/m[superscript 2] of mirror surface area). This paper reviews relevant programmatic and technological issues, as well as possible approaches for addressing these issues-including direct fabrication of monocrystalline silicon mirrors, active (in-space adjustable) figure correction of replicated mirrors, static post-fabrication correction using ion implantation, differential erosion or deposition, and coating-stress manipulation of thin substrates.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research
Terms of Use
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Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2238247
