Smithsonian Widefield Infrared Camera

摘要

The Smithsonian Widefield Infrared Camera (SWIRC) is a Y-, J-, and H-band imager for the f/5 MMT. Proposed in May 2003 and commissioned in June 2004, the goal of the instrument was to deliver quickly a wide field-of-view instrument with minimal optical elements and hence high throughput. The trade-off was to sacrifice K-band capability by not having an internal, cold Lyot stop. We describe SWIRC's design and capabilities, and discuss lessons learned from the thermal design and the detector mount, all of which have been incorporated into the upcoming MMT & Magellan Infrared Spectrograph.