ARCHONS: a highly multiplexed superconducting optical to near-IR camera

Benjamin A. Mazin; Kieran O'Brien; Sean McHugh; Bruce Bumble; David Moore; Sunil Golwala; Jonas Zmuidzinas

doi:10.1117/12.856440

15 July 2010 ARCHONS: a highly multiplexed superconducting optical to near-IR camera

Benjamin A. Mazin, Kieran O'Brien, Sean McHugh, Bruce Bumble, David Moore, Sunil Golwala, Jonas Zmuidzinas

Proceedings Volume 7735, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy III; 773518 (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.856440
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2010, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

We report on the development of ARCONS, the ARray Camera for Optical to Near-IR Spectrophotometry. This photon counting integral field unit (IFU), being built at UCSB and Caltech with detectors fabricated at JPL, will use a unique, highly multiplexed low temperature detector technology known as Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors (MKIDs). These detectors, which operate at 100 mK, should provide photon counting with energy resolution of R = E/δE > 20 and time resolution of a microsecond, with a quantum efficiency of around 50%. We expect to field the instrument at the Palomar 200" telescope in the first quarter of 2011 with an array containing 1024 pixels in a 32×32 pixel form factor to yield a field of view of approximately 10×10 arcseconds. The bandwidth of the camera is limited by the rising sky count rate at longer wavelengths, but we anticipate a bandwidth of 0.35 to 1.35 μm will be achievable. A simple optical path and compact dewar utilizing a cryogen-free adiabatic demagnetization refridgerator (ADR) allows the camera to be deployed quickly at Naysmith or Coud´e foci at a variety of telescopes. A highly expandable software defined radio (SDR) readout that can scale up to much larger arrays has been developed.

Citation Download Citation

Benjamin A. Mazin, Kieran O'Brien, Sean McHugh, Bruce Bumble, David Moore, Sunil Golwala, and Jonas Zmuidzinas "ARCHONS: a highly multiplexed superconducting optical to near-IR camera", Proc. SPIE 7735, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy III, 773518 (15 July 2010); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.856440

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