Development of a pre-optics module for spectroscopic wavelength splitting and pupil slicing

该项目旨在为天文学家开发一种新工具来研究太空物体的光谱。 光谱学使科学家能够确定物体的特征，例如温度、距离和运动，并有可能发现遥远的系外行星。 当前的技术使用光纤电缆将光输入光谱仪。现有的光谱仪是大型、复杂的仪器。 首席研究员将开发新技术，使光谱仪变得更小、更高效、成本更低。他还将探索在镜片上使用特殊的表面处理来减少不必要的反射。 这些技术进步不仅有利于天文学，而且有利于光谱学的其他应用。社区外展活动将吸引学生并促进与项目目标相关的 STEM 活动。这项研究将提出一种概念，将光谱仪的波长通道分离成更简单和更小的光谱仪，从而允许更紧凑的仪器。 这对于大规模多路复用光谱设施非常有用，其中光谱仪的数量相当大，并且定位光谱仪的空间有限。 这种在前置光学模块中而不是在摄谱仪中的波长分裂减小了与波长分束器相关的尺寸和风险。 它还允许将蓝色通道定位在更靠近望远镜的位置，以显着改善 500 nm 以内的透射光。 此外，该研究还将探索纳米结构用于抗反射目的，并研究大规模生产技术以实现未来的可扩展性。这些单元还允许实施光瞳切片，这可以进一步简化光谱仪的复杂性。 该项目的智力价值在于推进了波长分裂和光瞳切片的设计，有利于天文光谱和其他光谱应用领域。此外，社区外展活动将吸引学生并促进与项目目标相关的 STEM 活动。该项目由 MPS 天文科学部和刺激竞争性研究既定计划 (EPSCoR) 共同资助。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project seeks to develop a new tool for astronomers to study the spectrum of light from objects in space. Spectroscopy allows scientists to determine characteristics of an object -- such as temperature, distance, and motion -- and potentially to discover distant exoplanets. Current technology uses fiber optic cables to feed light into spectrographs. Existing spectrographs are large, complicated instruments. The principal investigator will develop new technology that will make spectrographs can be smaller, more efficient, and less costly. He will also explore using a special surface treatment on the lenses to reduce unwanted reflections. These technological advancements will benefit not only astronomy, but also and other applications of spectroscopy. The community outreach initiatives will engage students and promote STEM activities related to the project's objectives.This study will advance a concept for separating the wavelength channels of a spectrograph into simpler and smaller spectrographs that would allow more compact instruments. This is useful for massively multiplexed spectroscopic facilities, where the number of spectrographs is quite large and space to locate the spectrographs limited. Such wavelength splitting in a pre-optics module rather than in the spectrograph reduces the size and risk associated with wavelength beam splitters. It also allows for locating blue channels closer to the telescope to significantly improve the transmitted light shortward of 500 nm. Additionally, the study will explore the use of nanostructures for antireflection purposes and investigate mass production techniques for future scalability. These units also allow the implementation of pupil slicing, which can further simplify spectrograph complexity. The project's intellectual merit lies in advancing the design aspects of wavelength splitting and pupil slicing, benefiting the field of astronomical spectroscopy and other spectroscopic applications. Furthermore, community outreach initiatives will engage students and promote STEM activities related to the project's objectives.This project is jointly funded by the Division of Astronomical Sciences in MPS and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.