NanoVipa: a miniaturized high-resolution echelle spectrometer, for the monitoring of young stars from a 6U Cubesat

摘要

AbstractWe introduce to astrophysical instrumentation and space optics the use of virtually imaged phased array (VIPA) to shrink échelle spectrometers and/or increase their resolution. Here, we report on both a concept of an echelle spectrometer with resolution$$R=50{,}000$$R=50,000(@653nm), which fits a 6U nanosatellite platform ($${{1{m U}= 10,{m cm} imes 10,{m cm} imes 10,{m cm}}}$$1U=10cm×10cm×10cm), and on our laboratory tests on a$$R=200{,}000$$R=200,000demonstrator. The outline of our paper is as follows: Sect. 1 introduces our concept of a 6U payload comprising an échelle spectrometer based on the VIPA. We present also the science cases of monitoring young stars, and the wider science landscape amenable with larger telescopes. Section 2 gives a more detailed description of the VIPA and of its implementation in a cross-dispersed spectrometer. Section 3 shows the first results at$$R=200{,}000$$R=200,000we already achieved at the Institut de Planétologie et d’Astrophysique de Grenoble (IPAG). Finally, Sect. 4 is a discussion on the remaining technical points to study.]]>