Optical System Design of Inter-Spacecraft Laser Interferometry Telescope

The fundamental measurement of space gravitational wave detection is to monitor the relative motion between pairs of freely falling test masses using heterodyne laser interferometry to a precision of 10 pm. The masses under test are millions of kilometers apart. The inter-spacecraft laser interferometry telescope deliver laser efficiently from one spacecraft to another. It is an important component of the gravitational wave detection observatory. It needs to meet the requirements of large compression ratio, high image quality and extraordinary stray light suppression ability. Based on the primary aberration theory, the method of the large compression ratio off-axis four-mirror optical system design is explored. After optimization, the system has an entrance pupil of 200 mm, compression ratio of 40 times, scientific field of view (FOV) of ±8 μrad. To facilitate suppressing the stray light and delivering the laser beam to the back-end scientific interferometers, the intermediate images and the real exit pupils are spatially available. Over the full FOV, the maximum root mean square (RMS) wavefront error is less than 0.007λ, PV value is less than 0.03λ (λ = 1064 nm). The image quality is approached to the diffraction-limit. The TTL noise caused by the wavefront error of the telescope is analyzed. The TTL noise in the image space of 300 μrad range is less than 1 × 10-10 m whose slope is lower than 0.6 μm/rad, which is under the noise budget of the laser interferometer space antenna (LISA), satisfying the requirements of space gravitational wave detection.

Design and application of an autonomous Master Control System for a multi-layer magnetic and helioseismic telescope

With the growing significance of space weather forecasting,multi-layer magnetic and helioseismic telescopes are emerging as a key area of research.However,owing to the diverse operational processes and sophisticated hardware configurations of these devices,there is an urgent need for efficient autonomous observation capabilities.An autonomous Master Control System(MCS)can ensure efficient performance,data consistency,and stability,and the prototype presented here adopts a microservices architecture,breaking down the hardware into multiple subsystems and converting their functions into individual services.A central decision-making system leads the operations,supported by three auxiliary systems and three device control systems.Through inter-subsystem service calls,it achieves rapid imaging and spectroscopic monitoring.To verify system stability and observation efficiency,the system was tested on the Solar Full-disk Multi-layer Magnetograph.Experimental results verify this system can operate automatically for 4 consecutive months,acquire photospheric vector magnetic and Doppler velocity fields within a 15-minute interval,and measure chromospheric longitudinal magnetic and Doppler velocity fields in under 180 s.This ensures consistent and stable solar monitoring and serves as a practical methodological benchmark for the development of similar devices.

Optical frequency comb technology: from ground to space

Optical frequency combs,as powerful tools for precision spectroscopy and research into optical frequency standards,have driven continuous progress and significant breakthroughs in applications such as time-frequency transfer,measurement of fundamental physical constants,and high-precision ranging,achieving a series of milestone results in ground-based environments.With the continuous maturation and evolution of femtosecond lasers and related technologies,optical frequency combs are moving from ground-based applications to astronomical and space-based applications,playing an increasingly important role in atomic clocks,exoplanet observations,gravitational wave measurements,and other areas.This paper,focusing on astronomical and space-based applications,reviews research progress on astronomical frequency combs,optical clock time-frequency networks,gravitational waves,dark matter measurement,dual-comb large-scale absolute ranging,and high-resolution atmospheric spectroscopy.With enhanced performance and their gradual application in the field of space-based research,optical frequency combs will undoubtedly provide more powerful support for astronomical science and cosmic exploration in the future.

The Jiao Tong University Spectroscopic Telescope Project

The Jiao Tong University Spectroscopic Telescope(JUST)is a 4.4-meter f/6.0 segmented-mirror telescope dedicated to spectroscopic observations.The JUST primary mirror is composed of 18 hexagonal segments,each with a diameter of 1.1 m.JUST provides two Nasmyth platforms for placing science instruments.One Nasmyth focus fits a field of view of 10′and the other has an extended field of view of 1.2°with correction optics.A tertiary mirror is used to switch between the two Nasmyth foci.JUST will be installed at a site at Lenghu in Qinghai Province,China,and will conduct spectroscopic observations with three types of instruments to explore the dark universe,trace the dynamic universe,and search for exoplanets:(1)a multi-fiber(2000 fibers)medium-resolution spectrometer(R=4000-5000)to spectroscopically map galaxies and large-scale structure;(2)an integral field unit(IFU)array of 500 optical fibers and/or a long-slit spectrograph dedicated to fast follow-ups of transient sources for multi-messenger astronomy;(3)a high-resolution spectrometer(R~100000)designed to identify Jupiter analogs and Earth-like planets,with the capability to characterize the atmospheres of hot exoplanets.

Comparing different light-emitting diodes as light sources for long path differential optical absorption spectroscopy NO_2 and SO_2 measurements

In this paper, we present a comparison of different light-emitting diodes （LEDs） as the light source for long path differential optical absorption spectroscopy （LP-DOAS） atmospheric trace gas measurements. In our study, we use a fiberoptic design, where high power LEDs used as the light source are coupled into the telescope using a Y shape fiber bundle. Two blue and one ultraviolet （UV） LEDs with different emission wavelength ranges are tested for NO2 and SO2 measurements. The detailed description of the instrumental setup, the NO2 and SO2 retrieval procedure, the error analysis, and the preliminary results from the measurements carried out in Science Island, Hefei, Anhui, China are presented. Our first measurement results show that atmospheric NO2 and SO2 have strong temporal variations in that area and that the measurement accuracy is strongly dependent on the visibility conditions. The measured NO2 and SO2 data are compared to the Ozone Monitoring Instrument （OMI） satellite observations. The results show that the OMI NO2 product underestimates the ground level NO2 by 45%, while the OMI SO2 data are highly influenced by clouds and aerosols, which can lead to large biases in the ground level concentrations. During the experiment, the mixing ratios of the atmospheric NO2 and SO2 vary from 8 ppbv to 36 ppbv and from 3 ppbv to 18 ppbv, respectively.

A low-cost and high-performance technique for adaptive optics static wavefront correction

Non-Common Path Error(NCPE) is one of the factors that limit an Adaptive Optics(AO)system from delivering ultra-high performance. To correct the NCPE associated static aberration, we propose a simple but robust and high-performance pupil-plane based wavefront measurement and correction technique, which can copy a single-mode fiber generated perfect wavefront to the AO system via an iteration optimization process, and the NCPE can be effectively corrected by directly commanding the Deformable Mirror(DM) of the AO system. Compared with the previous focal-plane based approach that uses focal plane based Point Spread Function(PSF) for correction evaluation, the pupil-plane based approach can be reliably and rapidly converged to a global optimization result and provides better performance, in particular for an AO system with a large initial static wavefront error. This technique we proposed can be implemented in astronomical AO systems where extremely high performance is required.

An experimental indoor phasing system based on active optics using dispersed Hartmann sensing technology in the visible waveband

A telescope with a larger primary mirror can collect much more light and resolve objects much better than one with a smaller mirror, and so the larger version is always pursued by astronomers and astronomical technicians. Instead of using a monolithic primary mirror, more and more large telescopes, which are currently being planned or in construction, have adopted a segmented primary mirror design. Therefore, how to sense and phase such a primary mirror is a key issue for the future of extremely large optical/infrared telescopes. The Dispersed Fringe Sensor （DFS）, or Dispersed Hartmann Sensor （DHS）, is a non-contact method using broadband point light sources and it can estimate the piston by the two-directional spectrum formed by the transmissive grating＇s dispersion and lenslet array. Thus it can implement the combination of co-focusing by Shack-Hartmann technology and phasing by dispersed fringe sensing technologies such as the template-mapping method and the Hartmann method. We introduce the successful design, construction and alignment of our dis- persed Hartmann sensor together with its design principles and simulations. We also conduct many successful real phasing tests and phasing corrections in the visible waveband using our existing indoor segmented mirror optics platform. Finally, some conclusions are reached based on the test and correction of experimental results.

Developing an Advanced Prototype of the Acousto-Optical Radio-Wave Spectrometer for Studying Star Formation in the Milky Way

The designed practically prototype of an advanced acousto-optical radio-wave spectrometer is presented in a view of its application to investigating the Milky Way star formation problems. The potential areas for observations of the cold interstellar medium, wherein such a spectrometer can be exploited successfully at different approximations, are: 1) comparison of the Milky Way case with extragalactic ones at scale of the complete galactic disk;2) global studies of the Galactic spiral arms;and 3) characterization of specific regions like molecular clouds or star clusters. These aspects allow us to suggest that similar instrument will be really useful. The developed prototype of spectrometer is able to realize multi-channel wideband parallel spectrum analysis of very-high-frequency radio-wave signals with an improved resolution power exceeding 103. It includes the 1D-acousto-optic wide-aperture cell as the input device for real-time scale data processing. Here, the current state of developing this acousto-optical spectrometer in frames of the astrophysical instrumentation is briefly discussed, and the data obtained experimentally with a tellurium dioxide crystalline acousto-optical cell are presented. Then, we describe a new technique for more precise spectrum analysis within an algorithm of the collinear wave heterodyning. It implies a two-stage integrated processing, namely, the wave heterodyning of a signal in an acoustically square-law nonlinear medium and then the optical processing in the same solid-state cell. Technical advantage of this approach lies in providing a direct multi-channel parallel processing of ultra-high-frequency radio-wave signals with the resolution power exceeding 104. This algorithm can be realized on a basis of exploiting a large-aperture effective acousto-optical cell, which operates in the Bragg regime and performs the ultra-high-frequency co-directional collinear acoustic wave heterodyning. The general concept and basic conclusions here are confirmed by proof-of-principle experiments with the specially designed cell of a new type based on a lead molybdate crystal.

An Advanced Multi-Band Acousto-Optical Radio-Wave Spectrometer with Multi-Channel Frequency Processing for Astrophysical Studies

We present an advanced schematic arrangement of the radio-wave spectrometer with a few parallel optical arms for processing the data flow. This arrangement includes two principal novelties. First of them consists in the proposed design, where each individual optical arm exhibits its original performances providing parallel multi-band observations within a few different scales simultaneously. These optical arms have the beam shapers providing both the needed incident light polarization and apodization to increase the dynamic range. After parallel acousto-optical processing, data flows of all the optical arms are united by the joint CCD matrix on the stage of the combined electronic data processing. The second novelty is in usage of unique wide-aperture bastron-based acousto-optical cell providing one of the best performances at the middle-frequencies (about 500 MHz) in comparison with the other available crystalline materials in this range. Such multi-band capabilities have a number of applications in astrophysical scenarios at different scales: from objects in the distant universe to planetary atmospheres in the Solar system. Thus one yields the united versatile instrument, which provides comprehensive studies of astrophysical objects simultaneously with precise synchronization in various frequency ranges.

Optical design for Antarctic Bright Star Survey Telescope

The exoplanet search is one of the most exciting research fields in astrophysics. The Antarctic Bright Star Survey Telescope(BSST), capable of continuous exoplanet observation on polar nights, is a Ritchey–Chretien telescope with a three-lens field corrector, and has a 300 mm aperture, 2.76 focal ratio, and a wavelength coverage ranging from 0.36 to 1.014 μm. Equipped with a 4 k × 4 k and 12 μm∕pixel CCD camera, the BSST can gain a field of view of 4.8°. This Letter presents the optical design, tolerance analysis, and the alignment plan for the BSST, and the test observation results.

MAIN OPTICAL SYSTEM OF CHINA'S 2.16-m TELESCOPE

This paper introduces configuration of the main optical system of China’s 2.16-m telescope and the results of its optical design. There are three foci in this telescope: the Cassegrain, the coude and the prime foci. Ritchey-Chretien (R-C) system is used as the Cassegrain system. The 2-lens and 3-lens correctors are prepared for the Cassegrain and the prime foci respectively. The most significant characteristic of this optical system is that the coude and Cassegrain systems share one secondary mirror. A relay mirror is added to the coude system. When the two systems exchange, the secondary mirror moves slightly, and the coude system obtained is free from both spherical aberration and coma simultaneously. Some other coude configurations and a special configuration for setting the focal reducer are also introduced in this paper.

Ground-layer adaptive optics for the New Vacuum Solar Telescope:Instrument description and first results

Ground-layer adaptive optics(GLAO)has shown its potential for use in solar observation owing to its wide field-of-view(FOV)correction.A high-order GLAO system that consists of a multiple direction Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor(WFS),a realtime controller with a multi-CPU processor,and a 151-element deformable mirror was developed for the 1-m New Vacuum Solar Telescope at Yunnan Observatories,Chinese Academy of Sciences.A hexagonal microlens with 9×8 subapertures is employed in the WFS.The detection FOV is 42′′×37′′,in which 9(3×3)guide regions are extracted for multiple direction wavefront sensing with a frame rate of up to 2200 Hz.To our knowledge,this is the first professional solar GLAO system used as a regularly operating instrument for scientific observations.Its installation and adjustment were performed in the summer of 2021.In this article,a detailed account of the GLAO system and its first light results and a comprehensive analysis of the performance of the GLAO system are provided.The results show that this system can effectively improve the imaging quality after compensating for the wavefront aberration due to ground-layer turbulence.

国外光电瞄准吊舱探测系统总体构架的对比分析

回顾了国外军队装备的四代光电瞄准吊舱的技术特点和发展历程,定义了光学口径和吊舱舱径之比(光舱比)作为衡量集成度的标准,重点针对第三代的Sniper XR ATP和ATFLIR两型采用共光路串联布局吊舱的探测系统进行了分析和正向设计:二者均拥有Φ150 mm口径,约1.5°×1.5°视场,在0.7~0.9μm和3.7~4.8μm波段的传递函数接近衍射限,前者为透射式前置望远系统,后者为离轴三反式前置望远系统,二者的结构布局为:前置望远系统置于吊舱前部压缩光束,通过光学铰链和快反镜将光束导入吊舱中,部分光进入各自的探测通道或激光发射通道。其中,类ATP的透射式前置望远系统可在汇聚光路中折叠形成俯仰/方位正交轴系并置于305 mm舱径内,光舱比约0.492;类ATFLIR的离轴三反式前置望远系统可在压缩后的平行光路中折叠形成方位/俯仰两个正交轴系并置于Φ330 mm的球体内,光舱比约0.455。作为对比,采用共光舱并联布局的第四代Litening 5和Talios吊舱探测系统将所有光学载荷和伺服框架平台置于吊舱前部的Φ406 mm球体内,光舱比约0.37,其并联共光舱设计架构的集成度较低。针对未来可能的升级要求,类ATFLIR吊舱比ATP吊舱具有更强的生命力,其采用纯反射式的前置望远系统可以更方便地增加波段和拓展功能。

南极光学天文望远镜控制软件关键技术

南极天文望远镜控制软件是望远镜软件系统的重要组成部分,是控制计算机在望远镜用户层和设备层之间运行的关键技术。对于用户层,控制软件需具备全自动观测的交互接口、卫星通信条件下的远程访问和故障诊断等功能;对于设备层,控制软件不但要完成对天体目标的精确指向和精密跟踪、计算并补偿系统误差和控制关键部件以达到目标像质,而且需实现对电源分配系统、除霜及加热系统的控制、设备及环境信息的采集和监测等。相比于普通台址,在南极大陆运行的光学天文望远镜有其独特的特点,控制软件需进行特殊设计。本文重点从操作系统选择、远程建立望远镜指向误差修正模型方法、全自动观测软件接口、卫星通信及远程运维、望远镜实时状态监测和故障诊断等方面探讨了南极天文光学望远镜控制软件的关键技术和设计原则,并展望未来技术的发展,为南极天文望远镜的研制和控制系统研发提供技术储备。

月基紫外-光学-红外天文观测站点选取方法研究

月面独特的位置和环境优势,为天文观测提供了难得的机会。目前包括中国、美国、欧洲航天局、俄罗斯、日本、印度等在内的多个国家和机构都在大力开展月球探测。对于开展多种科学研究的月球探测计划,站点的选取需综合考虑各项科学的需求。本文主要介绍开展月基紫外-光学-红外天文观测对观测站点的需求,并针对该需求提出了评估某个候选站址是否满足天文观测需求的定量化分析方法。该方法适用于全月面范围内任意指定点的选址分析,将为规划中的国际月球科研站等月球探测计划的建设提供参考和支撑。

基于Seidel像差理论的离轴四反初始结构自动化设计方法研究

离轴反射系统设计的关键环节是确定适用初始结构并进行优化,一般从同轴结构或者专利库中寻找相似的结构开始优化,这往往需要耗费大量的时间。以Seidel像差理论为依据,研究了一种获取离轴四反系统初始结构的设计方法。在设计之初引入视场偏置,通过追迹近轴光线给出五种单色像差的初级Seidel像差表示。以Seidel像差绝对值最小化作为目标函数,同时加入对光学和系统结构上的限制条件构建含有约束条件的单目标非线性优化模型,并通过粒子群优化算法进行求解。在此基础上,通过MATLAB调用CODE V API接口,判断此视场偏置情况下是否满足无遮拦的条件,并从中挑选出满足条件的初始结构。设计了一款焦距为1200 mm,视场1.2°×20°,F数为6的离轴四反光学系统,系统结构布局紧凑,成像质量良好,各项指标均满足设计要求。

光波导输入的双通道同步定标虚拟成像相位阵列光谱仪

激光频率梳定标的虚拟成像相位阵列光谱仪有潜力同时实现超高光谱分辨率与波长定标精度,对于天文光谱探测有重要意义。然而,现有的研究工作中,虚拟成像相位阵列光谱仪采用常规的双通道光纤输入模式,在受环境干扰时,两个通道的同步性较差,相对漂移严重,从而降低了光谱仪的重复性定标精度。为解决该问题,提出一种以光波导作为输入器件的双通道虚拟成像相位阵列光谱仪,利用波导通道之间相对稳定的特性,实现更高水平的同步定标精度。通过对不同环境下光谱仪的稳定性进行研究得出,在相似的测试条件下,波导输入的虚拟成像相位阵列光谱仪的重复性定标精度明显优于光纤输入时的定标表现。

高分辨率阶梯光栅光谱仪的光学设计

简述阶梯光栅的基本原理和在天文学中的应用,分析并比较了阶梯光栅光谱仪与普通平面闪耀光栅光谱仪的区别。为正在研制中的一架国产4m通光口径的光谱巡天望远镜(简称LAMOST)设计了高分辨率阶梯光栅光谱仪的光学方案,该设计方案采用了白光孔径准直镜系统,大闪耀角的R4阶梯光栅和无遮拦的离轴折叠Schmidt照相机。

拼接镜主动共相实验研究

针对拼接型天文望远镜主镜的共相检测问题,对宽窄带夏克哈特曼检测法在拼接主镜各子镜间平移误差的测量进行了理论与仿真分析,并搭建了一套室内拼接镜的主动共相检测实验光路系统,其中拼接镜是由4块对边长为100mm、曲率半径为2 000mm的正六边形球面反射镜组成.首先,利用夏克波前探测器进行了拼接镜的精共焦误差的检测,通过主动光学技术控制压电陶瓷促动器,实现了拼接镜的精共焦的调节;然后通过宽带共相检测实现了粗共相的检测;最后,通过窄带共相检测实现了精共相的检测,并通过主动光学技术控制压电陶瓷促动器,实现了共相的调节.实验表明:宽窄带夏克哈特曼检测法对拼接子镜平移误差测量量程达到几十微米,共相检测精度达到15nm,满足拼接镜对平移误差的测量要求.

利用四棱锥传感器检测光学拼接镜的法向光程差

研制光学天文望远镜拼接主镜时,需要精确检测各子镜单元之间的法向光程差。在对四棱锥波前检测原理分析的基础上,通过反射立方体模拟拼接镜面,开展四棱锥传感器的检测实验,验证了四棱锥传感器检测信号和拼接镜子单元间的piston误差信号之间存在确定的函数关系。在一个波长的位移行程内,目前可以达到数十纳米的测量精度。