Astronomical Instruments – how they are planned, built and tested

/Astronomical Instruments – how they are planned, built and tested

Astronomical Instruments – how they are planned, built and tested


Event Details

This event finished on 05 December 2019


Lecturer: Dr. Carlos Durán

 

Day 1 (10:00 – 11:15  +  11:30 – 12:45)

1. Drivers for a telescope (and instrumentation)

  • Scientific Interest
  • Technology
  • Interface and Specification.
  • Project Management

2. Constraints, limitations and barriers

  • Technology & technics
  • Site (Atmosphere)
  • Money
  • Logistics & Operation
  • Competitors / use.

3. Telescopes and configurations

  • Single Dish / Arrays
  • Ground-base / Air- Balloon borned / Space

4. Testing, Commissioning and Acceptance.

  • Key concepts

5. Operation: The non-visible backstage.

  • Data Handling, Calibration and Archiving
  • Surface accuracy and efficiencies
  • Pointing and Atmospheric models
  • Power
  • Cryogenics

Day 2 (10:00 – 11:15  +  11:30 – 12:45)

1. Receiver Technology used in (Radio) Astronomy

  • Front-end
    • Heterodynes (single pixel and arrays)
    • Calorimeters / Bolometers
  • Backends
    • Spectrometers: AOS / FFTs
    • Correlators (Auto and Cross)
    • ADC and Total power detectors.

2. The need of low temperature: Cryostat and Cryogenics

3. (Quasi) Optics, Telescope Coupling and interfacing.

4. The design of an instrument.

Modeling and simulations

Selection of Components

Optics Design (Mirrors, filters, windows, etc)

Mechanical design

Electronics and Electrical Interfacing

Software

5. Tune up, characterization and commissioning

Lab Tests and Operation points

Merit figures: Allan Variance, T_Rec, Thermo/mech. Stabilities. Uncertainties

Commissioning.

 

DAY 3: 10h

 

Receiver lab visit

2019-10-31T12:43:49+00:00