The optical design of the QUBIC beam combiner

Donnacha Gayer; David Bennett; Créidhe O'Sullivan; Stephen Scully; Gareth Curran; Jean-Christophe Hamilton; Marie-Anne Bigot-Sazy; Michel Piat; Jean Kaplan; Andrea Tartari; Massimo Gervasi; Mario Zannoni

doi:10.1117/12.925181

24 September 2012 The optical design of the QUBIC beam combiner

Donnacha Gayer, David Bennett, Créidhe O'Sullivan, Stephen Scully, Gareth Curran, Jean-Christophe Hamilton, Marie-Anne Bigot-Sazy, Michel Piat, Jean Kaplan, Andrea Tartari, Massimo Gervasi, Mario Zannoni

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 8452, Millimeter, Submillimeter, and Far-Infrared Detectors and Instrumentation for Astronomy VI; 845229 (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.925181
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2012, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Abstract

The Q and U Bolometric Interferometer for Cosmology (QUBIC) is a ground-based interferometer that aims to meet one of the major challenges of modern cosmology in the detection of B-mode polarization anisotropies in the Cosmic Microwave Background.B-mode anisotropies originate from tensor fluctuations of the metric produced during the inflationary phase of the early Universe. Their detection would therefore constitute a major step towards understanding the primordial Universe. The expected level of these anisotropies is however so small that detection requires instruments with high sensitivity and extremely good control of systematic effects. The QUBIC instrument is based on the novel concept of bolometric interferometry, and exploits the sensitivity advantages of bolometric detectors along with the greater control of systematics offered by interferometry.The instrument will directly observe the sky through an array of entry horns whose signals will be combined optically onto an array of bolometers cooled to around 300mK. The whole set-up is located inside a cryostat. The sensitivity of the instrument is maximised if equivalent baselines produce identical fringe patterns on the focal plane. This requires the minimization of wavefront aberrations for a wide field-of-view and a fast system.In this poster we present the quasi-optical design and analysis of the dual reflector designed to do this. We report on the loss of sensitivity for different levels of optical aberration in the combiner. The sensitivity of the QUBIC instrument is comparable with that of an imager with the same number of horns but with much greater control over systematics.

Citation Download Citation

Donnacha Gayer, David Bennett, Créidhe O'Sullivan, Stephen Scully, Gareth Curran, Jean-Christophe Hamilton, Marie-Anne Bigot-Sazy, Michel Piat, Jean Kaplan, Andrea Tartari, Massimo Gervasi, and Mario Zannoni "The optical design of the QUBIC beam combiner", Proc. SPIE 8452, Millimeter, Submillimeter, and Far-Infrared Detectors and Instrumentation for Astronomy VI, 845229 (24 September 2012); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.925181

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available

Members: $17.00

Non-members: $21.00 ADD TO CART

PROCEEDINGS
8 PAGES

DOWNLOAD PAPER SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

GET CITATION

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Get copyright permission Get copyright permission on Copyright Marketplace

KEYWORDS

Bolometers

Mirrors

Polarization

Zemax

Control systems

Interferometry

Anisotropy

Show All Keywords

Keywords/Phrases

Search In:

Publication Years