Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “Space Interferometry Mission beam combiner”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

16 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2008

Brassboard Astrometric Beam Combiner (ABC) Development for the Space Interferometry Mission (SIM)

The Astrometric Beam Combiner (ABC) is a critical element of the Space Interferometry Mission (SIM) that performs three key functions: coherently combine starlight from two siderostats; individually detect starlight for angle tracking; and disperse and detect the interferometric fringes. In addition, the ABC contains: a stimulus, cornercubes and shutters for in-orbit calibration; several tip/tilt mirror mechanisms for in-orbit alignment; and internal metrology beam launcher for pathlength monitoring. The detailed design of the brassboard ABC (which has the form, fit and function of the flight unit) is complete, procurement of long-lead items is underway, and assembly and testing is expected to be completed in Spring 2009. In this paper, we present the key requirements for the ABC, details of the completed optical and mechanical design as well as plans for assembly and alignment.

PlanetQuest↗
NASA NTRS2002

Astrometric beam combiner

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Space Interferometry Mission beam combiner↗
NASA NTRS2012

Telescope Alignment From Sparsely Sampled Wavefront Measurements Over Pupil Subapertures

Alignment of two-element telescopes is a classic problem. During recent integration and test of the Space Interferometry Mission s (SIM s) Astrometric Beam Combiner (ABC), the innovators were faced with aligning two such telescope subsystems in the presence of a further complication: only two small subapertures in each telescope s pupil were accessible for measuring the wavefront with a Fizeau interferometer. This meant that the familiar aberrations that might be interpreted to infer system misalignments could be viewed only over small sub-regions of the pupil, making them hard to recognize. Further, there was no contiguous surface of the pupil connecting these two subapertures, so relative phase piston information was lost; the underlying full-aperture aberrations therefore had an additional degree of ambiguity. The solution presented here is to recognize that, in the absence of phase piston, the Zygo measurements primarily provide phase tilt in the subaperture windows of interest. Because these windows are small and situated far from the center of the (inaccessible) unobscured full aperture, any aberrations that are higher-order than tilt will be extremely high-order on the full aperture, and so not necessary or helpful to the alignment. Knowledge of the telescope s optical prescription allows straightforward evaluation of sensitivities (subap mode strength per unit full-aperture aberration), and these can be used in a predictive matrix approach to move with assurance to an aligned state. The technique is novel in every operational way compared to the standard approach of alignment based on full-aperture aberrations or searching for best rms wavefront. This approach is closely grounded in the observable quantities most appropriate to the problem. It is also more intuitive than inverting full phase maps (or subaperture Zernike spectra) with a ray-tracing program, which must certainly work in principle, but in practice met with limited success. Even if such classical alignment techniques became practical, the techniques reported here form a reassuringly transparent and intuitive check on the course of the alignment with very little computational effort.

Bloemhof, Eric E.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Design and Performance of an Astrometric Beam Combiner for Space Interferometry

This paper describes the design and performance of a brassboard astrometric beam combiner. The beam combiner was developed as part of the JPL Interferometry Technology Program (ITP). The purpose of this program is to test out design concepts in hardware that will eventually be used for the Space Interferometry Mission (SIM).

interferometry↗
NASA NTRS2012

Integrated Optics Achromatic Nuller for Stellar Interferometry

This innovation will replace a beam combiner, a phase shifter, and a mode conditioner, thus simplifying the system design and alignment, and saving weight and space in future missions. This nuller is a dielectric-waveguide-based, four-port asymmetric coupler. Its nulling performance is based on the mode-sorting property of adiabatic asymmetric couplers that are intrinsically achromatic. This nuller has been designed, and its performance modeled, in the 6.5-micrometer to 9.25-micrometer spectral interval (36% bandwidth). The calculated suppression of starlight for this 15-cm-long device is 10(exp -5) or better through the whole bandwidth. This is enough to satisfy requirements of a flagship exoplanet-characterization mission. Nulling interferometry is an approach to starlight suppression that will allow the detection and spectral characterization of Earth-like exoplanets. Nulling interferometers separate the light originating from a dim planet from the bright starlight by placing the star at the bottom of a deep, destructive interference fringe, where the starlight is effectively cancelled, or nulled, thus allowing the faint off-axis light to be much more easily seen. This process is referred to as nulling of the starlight. Achromatic nulling technology is a critical component that provides the starlight suppression in interferometer-based observatories. Previously considered space-based interferometers are aimed at approximately 6-to-20-micrometer spectral range. While containing the spectral features of many gases that are considered to be signatures of life, it also offers better planet-to-star brightness ratio than shorter wavelengths. In the Integrated Optics Achromatic Nuller (IOAN) device, the two beams from the interferometer's collecting telescopes pass through the same focusing optic and are incident on the input of the nuller.

Ksendzov, Alexander↗
NASA NTRS2008

Waveguide Harmonic Generator for the SIM

A second-harmonic generator (SHG) serves as the source of the visible laser beam in an onboard calibration scheme for NASA's planned Space Interferometry Mission (SIM), which requires an infrared laser beam and a visible laser beam coherent with the infrared laser beam. The SHG includes quasi-phase-matched waveguides made of MgO-doped, periodically poled lithium niobate, pigtailed with polarization- maintaining optical fibers. Frequency doubling by use of such waveguides affords the required combination of coherence and sufficient conversion efficiency for the intended application. The spatial period of the poling is designed to obtain quasi-phase- matching at a nominal middle excitation wavelength of 1,319.28 nm. The SHG is designed to operate at a warm bias (ambient temperature between 20 and 25 C) that would be maintained in its cooler environment by use of electric heaters; the heater power would be adjusted to regulate the temperature precisely and thereby maintain the required precision of the spatial period. At the state of development at the time of this reporting, the SHG had been packaged and subjected to most of its planned space-qualification tests.

Chang, Daniel↗
NASA NTRS2010

Vacuum-Compatible Wideband White Light and Laser Combiner Source System

For the Space Interferometry Mission (SIM) Spectrum Calibration Development Unit (SCDU) testbed, wideband white light is used to simulate starlight. The white light source mount requires extremely stable pointing accuracy (<3.2 microradians). To meet this and other needs, the laser light from a single-mode fiber was combined, through a beam splitter window with special coating from broadband wavelengths, with light from multimode fiber. Both lights were coupled to a photonic crystal fiber (PCF). In many optical systems, simulating a point star with broadband spectrum with stability of microradians for white light interferometry is a challenge. In this case, the cameras use the white light interference to balance two optical paths, and to maintain close tracking. In order to coarse align the optical paths, a laser light is sent into the system to allow tracking of fringes because a narrow band laser has a great range of interference. The design requirements forced the innovators to use a new type of optical fiber, and to take a large amount of care in aligning the input sources. The testbed required better than 1% throughput, or enough output power on the lowest spectrum to be detectable by the CCD camera (6 nW at camera). The system needed to be vacuum-compatible and to have the capability for combining a visible laser light at any time for calibration purposes. The red laser is a commercially produced 635-nm laser 5-mW diode, and the white light source is a commercially produced tungsten halogen lamp that gives a broad spectrum of about 525 to 800 nm full width at half maximum (FWHM), with about 1.4 mW of power at 630 nm. A custom-made beam splitter window with special coating for broadband wavelengths is used with the white light input via a 50-mm multi-mode fiber. The large mode area PCF is an LMA-8 made by Crystal Fibre (core diameter of 8.5 mm, mode field diameter of 6 mm, and numerical aperture at 625 nm of 0.083). Any science interferometer that needs a tracking laser fringe to assist in alignment can use this system.

Azizi, Alineza↗
NASA NTRS2003

Laboratory performance of the Keck interferometer nulling beam combiner

Now that regular visibility squared measurements are routinely achieved, mid-infrared nulling is the next observing mode to be implemented on the Keck Interferometer. This mode's main objective is the characterization of exo-zodiacal dust disks around nearby main sequence stars in support of the TPF space mission. Keck Nuller also shares numerious characteristics with an interferometric TPF, and will then serve as a technical precursor for this mission. We report here the results obtained in the laboratory with the KI mid-IR nulling beam combiner, which is based on a dual polarization Modified Mach Zender combiner and dispersion and achromatic nulling through zinc-selenide dielectric plates.

mid-infrared↗
NASA NTRS2003

Mid-infrared nuller for Terrestrial Planet Finder: design progress and results

Nulling interferometry shows promise as a technique enabling investigation of faint objects such as planets and exo-zodiacal dust around nearby stars. At Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a nulling beam combiner based on a design built for the Keck Observatory in Hawaii has been used to pursue deep and stable narrowband nulls. We describe the design and layout of the Modified Mach Zehnder TPF nuller, and the results achieved in the laboratory to date. We report the stabilized 900,000 nulls achieved using a CO2 laser, and discuss the performance limitations and way forward to the deep, broadband nulls required for a space-borne nulling interferometer mission. We show briefly the results from Keck breadboard experiments: broadband transient nulls centered around 10.6 micron have been achieved ranging between 17500 at 18% bandwidth and 7500:1 at 29% bandwidth.

Serabyn, E.↗
NASA NTRS2004

SIM spectral characteristics and accuracy analysis

The Space Interferometry Mission (SIM) will perform global astrometry (full sky), local wide-angle (15 degree) and narrow-angle (1 degree) observations to search extra-solar planets, and can calibrate stellar and galactic evolution theories. The astrometric accuracy of the SIM mission depends on spectral characteristics of the optics, detectors and targets. This paper will discuss the photometric throughput of the SIM instrument, and analyze effects of wavefront errors, optical mismatches and control biases as a function of wavelength. The color dependence models of the instrument optics including mirrors, lenses, field-stop and beam-splitter are presented. The performances of different detectors with a variety of coatings are compared. A model of the SIM fringe spectrometer is created. For early and late types of stars, brightness dependency errors are analyzed for different combinations of optics and detectors. Visibility loss due to imperfect optics is investigated in detail. Based on the models of instrument and estimated visibilities, the astrometric accuracies for various kinds of stars are evaluated. It is important to emphasize that not only light sources, mirrors, lenses, field stop and detectors are all wavelength dependent, but also fringe visibility loss, wavefront error, optics control error, etc. are all a function of wavelengths. For the first time the estimate of SIM performance is based on spectral analysis of all factors above, rather than monochromatic approximations of detected fringes, or simply adopted constants. This paper summarizes the astrometric accuracies for a wide range of stars and various combinations of optical design and detector configurations. It has been verified that SIM has astrometric accuracy of about 4 μas for targets with different spectra.

Shao, Michael↗
NASA NTRS1992

Advanced optical instruments technology

The science objectives for proposed NASA missions for the next decades push the state of the art in sensitivity and spatial resolution over a wide range of wavelengths, including the x-ray to the submillimeter. While some of the proposed missions are larger and more sensitive versions of familiar concepts, such as the next generation space telescope, others use concepts, common on the Earth, but new to space, such as optical interferometry, in order to provide spatial resolutions impossible with other concepts. However, despite their architecture, the performance of all of the proposed missions depends critically on the back-end instruments that process the collected energy to produce scientifically interesting outputs. The Advanced Optical Instruments Technology panel was chartered with defining technology development plans that would best improve optical instrument performance for future astrophysics missions. At this workshop the optical instrument was defined as the set of optical components that reimage the light from the telescope onto the detectors to provide information about the spatial, spectral, and polarization properties of the light. This definition was used to distinguish the optical instrument technology issues from those associated with the telescope, which were covered by a separate panel. The panel identified several areas for optical component technology development: diffraction gratings; tunable filters; interferometric beam combiners; optical materials; and fiber optics. The panel also determined that stray light suppression instruments, such as coronagraphs and nulling interferometers, were in need of general development to support future astrophysics needs.

Shao, Mike↗
NASA NTRS2004

Error Modeling of Multi-baseline Optical Truss: Application to SIM Metrology Truss Field Dependent Error - Part II

The current design of the Space Interferometry Mission (SIM) employs a 19 laser-metrology-beam system (also called L19 external metrology truss) to monitor changes of distances between the fiducials of the flight system's multiple baselines. The function of the external metrology truss is to aid in the determination of the time-variations of the interferometer baseline. The largest contributor to truss error occurs in SIM wide-angle observations when the articulation of the siderostat mirrors (in order to gather starlight from different sky coordinates) brings to light systematic errors due to offsets at levels of instrument components (which include comer cube retro-reflectors, etc.). This error is labeled external metrology wide-angle field-dependent error. Physics-based model of field-dependent error at single metrology gauge level is developed and linearly propagated to errors in interferometer delay. In this manner delay error sensitivity to various error parameters or their combination can be studied using eigenvalue/eigenvector analysis. Also validation of physics-based field-dependent model on SIM testbed lends support to the present approach. As a first example, dihedral error model is developed for the comer cubes (CC) attached to the siderostat mirrors. Then the delay errors due to this effect can be characterized using the eigenvectors of composite CC dihedral error. The essence of the linear error model is contained in an error-mapping matrix. A corresponding Zernike component matrix approach is developed in parallel, first for convenience of describing the RMS of errors across the field-of-regard (FOR), and second for convenience of combining with additional models. Average and worst case residual errors are computed when various orders of field-dependent terms are removed from the delay error. Results of the residual errors are important in arriving at external metrology system component requirements. Double CCs with ideally co-incident vertices reside with the siderostat. The non-common vertex error (NCVE) is treated as a second example. Finally combination of models, and various other errors are discussed.

comer cube retro-reflector↗
NASA NTRS2002

The Fourier-Kelvin Stellar Interferometer Mission Concept

The Fourier-Kelvin Stellar Interferometer (FKSI) is a mission concept for an imaging interferometer for the mid-infrared spectral region (5-30 microns). FKSI is conceived as a scientific and technological precursor to TPF as well as Space Infrared Interferometric Telescope (SPIRIT), Submillimeter Probe Evolution of Cosmic Structure (SPECS), and Single Aperture for Infrared Observatory (SAFIR). It will also be a high angular resolution system complementary to Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST). The scientific emphasis of the mission is on the evolution of protostellar systems, from just after the collapse of the precursor molecular cloud core, through the formation of the disk surrounding the protostar, the formation of planets in the disk, and eventual dispersal of the disk material. FKSI will also search for brown dwarfs and Jupiter mass and smaller planets, and could also play a very powerful role in the investigation of the structure of active galactic nuclei and extra-galactic star formation. We are in the process of studying alternative interferometer architectures and beam combination techniques, and evaluating the relevant science and technology tradeoffs. Some of the technical challenges include the development of the cryocooler systems necessary for the telescopes and focal plane array, light and stiff but well-damped truss systems to support the telescopes, and lightweight and coolable optical telescopes. The goal of the design study is to determine if a mid-infrared interferometry mission can be performed within the cost and schedule requirements of a Discovery class mission. At the present time we envision the FKSI as comprised of five one meter diameter telescopes arranged along a truss structure in a linear non-redundant array, cooled to 35 K. A maximum baseline of 20 meters gives a nominal resolution of 26 mas at 5 microns. Using a Fizeau beam combination technique, a simple focal plane camera could be used to obtain both Fourier and spectral data simultaneously for a given orientation of the array. The spacecraft will be rotated to give sufficient Fourier data to reconstruct complex images of a broad range of astrophysical sources.

Danchi, W. C.↗
NASA NTRS2010

Recent Status of SIM Lite Astrometric Observatory Mission: Flight Engineering Risk Reduction Activities

The SIM Lite Astrometric Observatory is a mission concept for a space-borne instrument to perform micro-arc-second narrow-angle astrometry to search 60 to 100 nearby stars for Earth-like planets, and to perform global astrometry for a broad astrophysics program. The instrument consists of two Michelson stellar interferometers and a telescope. The first interferometer chops between the target star and a set of reference stars. The second interferometer monitors the attitude of the instrument in the direction of the target star. The telescope monitors the attitude of the instrument in the other two directions. The main enabling technology development for the mission was completed during phases A & B. The project is currently implementing the developed technology onto flight-ready engineering models. These key engineering tasks will significantly reduce the implementation risks during the flight phases C & D of the mission. The main optical interferometer components, including the astrometric beam combiner, the fine steering optical mechanism, the path-length-control and modulation optical mechanisms, focal-plane camera electronics and cooling heat pipe, are currently under development. Main assemblies are built to meet flight requirements and will be subjected to flight qualification level environmental testing (random vibration and thermal cycling) and performance testing. This paper summarizes recent progress in engineering risk reduction activities.

astrometry↗
NASA NTRS2008

NASA Tech Briefs, November 2008

Topics covered include: Digital Phase Meter for a Laser Heterodyne Interferometer; Vision System Measures Motions of Robot and External Objects; Advanced Precipitation Radar Antenna to Measure Rainfall From Space; Wide-Band Radar for Measuring Thickness of Sea Ice; Vertical Isolation for Photodiodes in CMOS Imagers; Wide-Band Microwave Receivers Using Photonic Processing; L-Band Transmit/Receive Module for Phase-Stable Array Antennas; Microwave Power Combiner/Switch Utilizing a Faraday Rotator; Compact Low-Loss Planar Magic-T; Using Pipelined XNOR Logic to Reduce SEU Risks in State Machines; Quasi-Optical Transmission Line for 94-GHz Radar; Next Generation Flight Controller Trainer System; Converting from DDOR SASF to APF; Converting from CVF to AAF; Documenting AUTOGEN and APGEN Model Files; Sequence History Update Tool; Extraction and Analysis of Display Data; MRO DKF Post-Processing Tool; Rig Diagnostic Tools; MRO Sequence Checking Tool; Science Activity Planner for the MER Mission; UAVSAR Flight-Planning System; Templates for Deposition of Microscopic Pointed Structures; Adjustable Membrane Mirrors Incorporating G-Elastomers; Hall-Effect Thruster Utilizing Bismuth as Propellant; High-Temperature Crystal-Growth Cartridge Tubes Made by VPS; Quench Crucibles Reinforced with Metal; Deep-Sea Hydrothermal-Vent Sampler; Mars Rocket Propulsion System; Two-Stage Passive Vibration Isolator; Improved Thermal Design of a Compression Mold; Enhanced Pseudo-Waypoint Guidance for Spacecraft Maneuvers; Altimetry Using GPS-Reflection/Occultation Interferometry; Thermally Driven Josephson Effect; Perturbation Effects on a Supercritical C7H16/N2 Mixing Layer; Gold Nanoparticle Labels Amplify Ellipsometric Signals; Phase Matching of Diverse Modes in a WGM Resonator; WGM Resonators for Terahertz-to-Optical Frequency Conversion; Determining Concentration of Nanoparticles from Ellipsometry; Microwave-to-Optical Conversion in WGM Resonators; Four-Pass Coupler for Laser-Diode-Pumped Solid-State Laser; Low-Resolution Raman-Spectroscopy Combustion Thermometry; Temperature Sensors Based on WGM Optical Resonators; Varying the Divergence of Multiple Parallel Laser Beams; Efficient Algorithm for Rectangular Spiral Search; Algorithm-Based Fault Tolerance Integrated with Replication; Targeting and Localization for Mars Rover Operations; Terrain-Adaptive Navigation Architecture; Self-Adjusting Hash Tables for Embedded Flight Applications; Schema for Spacecraft-Command Dictionary; Combined GMSK Communications and PN Ranging; System-Level Integration of Mass Memory; Network-Attached Solid-State Recorder Architecture; Method of Cross-Linking Aerogels Using a One-Pot Reaction Scheme; An Efficient Reachability Analysis Algorithm.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2006

Deep Broad-Band Infrared Nulling Using A Single-Mode Fiber Beam Combiner and Baseline Rotation

The basic advantage of single-mode fibers for deep nulling applications resides in their spatial filtering ability, and has now long been known. However, and as suggested more recently, a single-mode fiber can also be used for direct coherent recombination of spatially separated beams, i.e. in a 'multi-axial' nulling scheme. After the first successful demonstration of deep (<2e-6) visible LASER nulls using this technique (Haguenauer & Serabyn, Applied Optics 2006), we decided to work on an infrared extension for ground based astronomical observations, e.g. using two or more off-axis sub-apertures of a large ground based telescope. In preparation for such a system, we built and tested a laboratory infrared fiber nuller working in a wavelength regime where atmospheric turbulence can be efficiently corrected, over a pass band (approx.1.5 to 1.8 micron) broad enough to provide reasonable sensitivity. In addition, since no snapshot images are readily accessible with a (single) fiber nuller, we also tested baseline rotation as an approach to detect off-axis companions while keeping a central null. This modulation technique is identical to the baseline rotation envisioned for the TPF-I space mission. Within this context, we report here on early laboratory results showing deep stable broad-band dual polarization infrared nulls <5e-4 (currently limited by detector noise), and visible LASER nulls better than 3e-4 over a 360 degree rotation of the baseline. While further work will take place in the laboratory to achieve deeper stable broad-band nulls and test off-axis sources detection through rotation, the emphasis will be put on bringing such a system to a telescope as soon as possible. Detection capability at the 500:1 contrast ratio in the K band (~2.2 microns) seem readily accessible within 50-100 mas of the optical axis, even with a first generation system mounted on a >5m AO equipped telescope such as the Palomar Hale 200 inch, the Keck, Subaru or Gemini telescopes.

single mode fibers↗