High thermal conductivity ball bearings for cryogenic applications

Jean-Louis Lizon

doi:10.1117/12.2622533

29 August 2022 High thermal conductivity ball bearings for cryogenic applications

Jean-Louis Lizon

Proceedings Volume 12188, Advances in Optical and Mechanical Technologies for Telescopes and Instrumentation V; 1218845 (2022) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2622533
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2022, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Conference Poster

Abstract

Infrared instruments need to be cooled to minimise their own thermal radiation. All these instruments are fitted with various optical components, which in order to be remotely selectable are mounted on wheels or turn tables. Both, the recent development in infrared detector technology and the construction of a new generation of large telescope lead to a growing request for large size infrared instruments. The previous generation of instruments was generally working with a 20mm to 30mm optical beam. In order to fully explore the performance of the modern giant telescopes, instruments require an optical beam up to 10 times larger than this. This very large increase in the size of the optical components leads to a direct increase in the dimension of the carrying and positioning mechanisms. In the middle of the 90th a large program was started in view of the original suite of instruments of the VLT (Very Large Telescope) with the aim to optimise large ball bearings for cryogenic application. This development has been followed up continuously over many years. In the meantime a number of instruments using these ball bearings are successfully in operation nights after nights since more than 20 years.

Citation Download Citation

Jean-Louis Lizon "High thermal conductivity ball bearings for cryogenic applications", Proc. SPIE 12188, Advances in Optical and Mechanical Technologies for Telescopes and Instrumentation V, 1218845 (29 August 2022); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2622533

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