Astronomical instrumentation and observational studies of supernova remnants and massive stars

我的主要研究计划是建造一种新仪器，特别是一种新的红外光谱仪，我将在世界上一些最大的望远镜上使用它。天文学的新发现总是依赖于新仪器的能力；因此，建造一种新的仪器是增强我们对宇宙理解的基本和必要的一步。用这个仪器项目来训练学生也是势在必行的，这将极大地有利于加拿大天文学界的未来。在这个仪器项目中，学生将学习如何设计和实现一种新型红外光谱仪的各种组件，作为他们博士论文的一部分。这个仪器项目将使用我们最近在多伦多大学为现代天文仪器建立的新实验室基础设施来执行。除了这个仪器项目，我还计划利用各种设施进行超新星遗迹和大质量恒星的观测研究，包括太空中的卫星和最终我建造的仪器。超新星遗迹是超新星爆炸的遗迹，这可能是宇宙中由大质量恒星死亡产生的最壮观的事件。通过研究超新星遗迹和大质量恒星，我试图回答以下问题：超新星是如何爆炸的？大质量恒星的演化和随之而来的超新星爆炸有什么联系？大质量恒星的演化和超新星爆炸的物理现象与黑洞或中子星的形成有什么关系？质量损失在大质量恒星演化中的作用是什么？这些都是很难回答的问题，但它们是令人着迷的问题。希望基于我在提案中要求的资金，我可以在几年内对上述问题给出有用的答案。

My primary research plan is to build a new instrument, specifically a new infrared spectrograph, which I will use on some of world's largest telescopes. New discoveries in astronomy are ever dependent on the capabilities of new instruments; therefore, building a new instrument is a fundamental and essential step for enhancing our understanding of the universe. It is also imperative to train students with this instrument program, which will greatly benefit the future of the Canadian astronomical community. In this instrumentation program, students will learn how to design and implement various components of a novel infrared spectrograph as part of their PhD thesis. This instrumentation program will be performed using the new laboratorial infrastructure that we recently established at the University of Toronto for modern astronomical instrumentation. In addition to this instrument program, I also plan to conduct observational studies of supernova remnants and massive stars using various facilities, including satellites in space and eventually the instruments that I built. A supernova remnant is the remains of a supernova explosion which is probably a single most spectacular event in the universe generated by the death of a massive star. By studying the supernova remnants and massive stars, I try to answer the following questions: [1] how do supernovae explode? [2] How are the evolutions of massive stars and consequent supernova explosions connected? [3] How are the evolutions of massive stars and the physics of supernova explosions are connected to the formation of black holes or neutron stars? [4] What is the role of mass loss in the evolution of massive stars? These are difficult questions to answer, but they are fascinating questions to address. Hopefully, based on the funding that I request in this proposal, I can give useful answers to the above questions in a few years.