Final correction by Ion Beam Figuring of thin shells for X-ray telescopes

摘要

Future space X-ray mission concepts like STAR-X, AXIS and Lynx foresee optics with both high angular resolutions (HEW ~ 0.5 to 5 arcsec) and large collecting areas (-0.2-2.0 m~2). These optics are very challenging to be produced and their manufacturing is under study. The Ion Beam Figuring (IBF) is one of the few techniques that is capable of correcting the residual manufacturing errors of the mirror shells and obtain the desired final optical figure. INAF-OA-Brera has two IBF facilities and is investigating the use of IBF on thin foils made by different materials, namely Silicon and Fused Silica. In this paper we describe the results obtained in a preliminary study on Silicon shells.