Active x-ray optics for the next generation of x-ray telescopes

Carolyn Atkins; Hongchang Wang; Peter Doel; David Brooks; Samantha Thompson; Charlotte Feldman; Richard Willingale; Tim Button; Daniel Rodriguez Sanmartin; Dou Zhang; Ady James; Craig Theobald; Graham Willis; Andrew D. Smith

doi:10.1117/12.820446

5 May 2009 Active x-ray optics for the next generation of x-ray telescopes

Carolyn Atkins, Hongchang Wang, Peter Doel, David Brooks, Samantha Thompson, Charlotte Feldman, Richard Willingale, Tim Button, Daniel Rodriguez Sanmartin, Dou Zhang, Ady James, Craig Theobald, Graham Willis, Andrew D. Smith

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 7360, EUV and X-Ray Optics: Synergy between Laboratory and Space; 736008 (2009) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.820446
Event: SPIE Optics + Optoelectronics, 2009, Prague, Czech Republic

Abstract

The immediate future for X-ray astronomy is the need for high sensitivity, requiring large apertures and collecting areas, the newly combined NASA, ESA and JAXA mission IXO (International X-ray Observatory) is specifically designed to meet this need. However, looking beyond the next decade, there have been calls for an X-ray space telescope that can not only achieve this high sensitivity, but could also boast an angular resolution of 0.1 arc-seconds, a factor of five improvement on the Chandra X-ray Observatory. NASA's proposed Generation-X mission is designed to meet this demand; it has been suggested that the X-ray optics must be active in nature in order to achieve this desired resolution. The Smart X-ray Optics (SXO) project is a UK based consortium looking at the application of active/adaptive optics to both large and small scale devices, intended for astronomical and medical purposes respectively. With Generation-X in mind, an active elliptical prototype has been designed by the SXO consortium to perform point-to-point X-ray focussing, while simultaneously manipulating its optical surface to improve its initial resolution. Following the completion of the large scale SXO prototype, presented is an overview of the production and operation of the prototype, with emphasis on the X-ray environment and preliminary results.

Citation Download Citation

Carolyn Atkins, Hongchang Wang, Peter Doel, David Brooks, Samantha Thompson, Charlotte Feldman, Richard Willingale, Tim Button, Daniel Rodriguez Sanmartin, Dou Zhang, Ady James, Craig Theobald, Graham Willis, and Andrew D. Smith "Active x-ray optics for the next generation of x-ray telescopes", Proc. SPIE 7360, EUV and X-Ray Optics: Synergy between Laboratory and Space, 736008 (5 May 2009); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.820446

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