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A cryogenically cooled, multidetector spectrometer for infrared astronomyA liquid helium-cooled, 24 detector grating spectrometer was developed and used for low resolution astronomical observations in the 5 to 14 micron spectral range. The instrument operated on the 91 cm Kuiper Airborne Observatory, the 3 m IRTF (Mauna Kea), the 3 m Shane telescope Observatory, the 3 m Shane telescope (Lick Observatory), and the 152 cm NASA and University of Arizona telescope. The detectors are discrete Si:Bi photoconductors with individual metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor preamplifiers operating at 4 K. The system uses a liquid helium-cooled slit, order-sorter filter, collimator mirror, grating, and camera mirror arranged in a Czerny-Turner configuration with a cold stop added between the collimator mirror and the grating. The distances between components are chosen so that the collimator mirror images the secondary mirror of the telescope onto the cold stop, thus providing a very effective baffle. Scattered radiation is effectively reduced by using liquid helium-cooled, black baffles to divide the spectrometer into three separate compartments. The system noise-equivalent flux density, when used on the 152 cm telescope from 8 to 13 microns with a resolving power of 50, is 4.4 x 10 to the minus 17th power W/sq cm micron square root of Hz. The main applications are for measuring continuum radiation levels and solid state emission and absorption features in regions of star and planet formation.
Document ID
19840026288
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Technical Memorandum (TM)
Authors
Witteborn, F. C. (NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Bregman, J. D. (NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
September 4, 2013
Publication Date
August 1, 1984
Subject Category
Astrophysics
Report/Patent Number
A-9837
NAS 1.15:86004
NASA-TM-86004
Accession Number
84N34359
Funding Number(s)
PROJECT: RTOP 352-02-03
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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