The Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO) will include telescopes of three different sizes, the smallest of which are the Small-Sized Telescopes (SSTs). In particular, the SSTs will be installed at the southern site of CTAO, on the Chilean Andes, and will cover the highest energy range of CTAO (up to ~300 TeV). The SSTs are developed by an international consortium of institutes that will provide them as an in-kind contribution to CTAO. The optical design of the SSTs is based on a Schwarzschild-Couder-like dual-mirror polynomial configuration, with a primary aperture of 4.3m diameter. They are equipped with a focal plane camera based on SiPM detectors covering a field of view of ~9°. The preliminary design of the SST telescopes was evaluated and approved during the Product Review (PR) organised with CTAO in February 2023. The SST project is now going through a consolidation phase leading to the finalisation and submission of the final design to the Critical Design Review (CDR), expected to occur late 2024, after which the production and construction of the telescopes will begin leading to a delivery of the telescopes to CTAO southern site starting at the end of 2025-early 2026 onward. In this contribution we will present the progress of the SST programme, including the results of the PDR, the consolidation phase of the project and the plan up to the on-site integration of the telescopes.
The Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO) consists of three types of telescopes: large-sized (LST), mediumsized (MST), and small-sized (SST), distributed in two observing sites (North and South). For the CTA South “Alpha Configuration” the construction and installation of 37 (+5) SST telescopes (a number that could increase up to 70 in future upgrades) are planned. The SSTs are developed by an international consortium of institutes that will provide them as an in-kind contribution to CTAO. The SSTs rely on a Schwarzschild-Couder-like dual-mirror polynomial optical design, with a primary mirror of 4 m diameter, and are equipped with a focal plane camera based on SiPM detectors covering a field of view of ~9°. The current SST concept was validated by developing the prototype dual-mirror ASTRI-Horn Cherenkov telescope and the CHEC-S SiPM focal plane camera. In this contribution, we will present an overview of the SST key technologies, the current status of the SST project, and the planned schedule.
The OARPAF telescope is an 80-cm-diameter optical telescope installed in the Antola Mount Regional Reserve, in Northern Italy. We present the results of the characterization of the site, as well as developments and interventions that have been implemented, with the goal of exploiting the facility for scientific and educational purposes. During the characterization of the site, an average background brightness of 22.40mAB (B filter) to 21.14mAB (I) per arcsecond squared, and a 1.5″ to 3.0″ seeing, have been measured. An estimate of the magnitude zero points for photometry is also reported. The material under commissioning includes three CCD detectors for which we provide the linearity range, gain, and dark current; a 31-orders échelle spectrograph with R ∼ 8500 to 15,000 and a dispersion of n = 1.39 × 10 − 6 px − 1λ + 1.45 × 10 − 4 nm / px, where λ is expressed in nm. The scientific and outreach potential of the facility is proven in different science cases, such as exoplanetary transits and active galactic nuclei variability. The determination of time delays of gravitationally lensed quasars, the microlensing phenomenon, and the tracking and the study of asteroids are also discussed as prospective science cases.
We present the preliminary design of Cerberus, a new scientific instrument for the alt-az, 80cm OARPAF telescope in the Ligurian mountains above Genoa, Italy. Cerberus will provide three focal stations at the Nasmyth focus, allowing: imaging and photometry with standard Johnson-Cousins UBV RI+Hα+Free filters, an on-axis guiding camera, and a tip-tilt lens for image stabilization up to 10Hz; long slit spectroscopy at R 5900 thanks to a LHIRES III spectrograph provided with a 1200l/mm grism; echelle spectroscopy at R 9300 using a FLECHAS spectrograph with optical fiber.
Volume Phase Holographic Gratings (VPHGs) are diffractive elements widely employed in the field of astronomical spectrographs. Photosensitive materials are used for the production of such elements and photopolymers represent a very interesting possibility. In particular, Bayfol® HX solid photopolymers are high performance holographic materials that have been already used for the realization of VPHGs working in the visible for small spectrographs. Recently, a new set of GRISMs have been commissioned at BFOSC spectrograph in order to replace worn or outperforming ones and improve the instrument throughput. The first dispersing element covers the Hα band, while the second one is designed to work in the UV down to 330 nm. Issues related to the material absorption and to the light scattering were faced at short wavelengths. A step forward in the implementation of this class of holographic materials is the design of VPHGs working in the infrared. Two gratings were designed, covering the ZJ band (0.8 – 1.35 μm) and the JH band (1.05 – 1.9 μm). RCWA simulations were performed to find the parameters (refractive index modulation and thickness) required to obtain high efficiency in the target spectral ranges. Material absorptions are not negligible in the NIR and have to be taken into account during the design phase. Preliminary writing tests were performed giving interesting results. In order to make the design phase more reliable, a study of the dependence of the refractive index modulation on wavelength was performed.
Specific astronomical science cases could take advantage of VPHG devices with design and features tailored for achieving the best performances. The manufacturing process require materials where it is possible to precisely control the efficiency response, specially in complex optical designs, where the realization tolerances have to be strictly fulfilled. In this paper, we present an innovative design for the DOLORES spectrograph @ TNG as an example of complex VPHG (in GRISM mode) based on photopolymers. This dispersing element and its prisms were designed to cover, with low R, more than one octave and to disentangle 1st and 2nd diffraction orders avoiding the typical contamination. The ok-sky results are finally presented.
In the astronomical field, the progressive increase in telescope size and in the complexity of the spectroscopic instrumentation has highlighted how the current technologies and traditional materials for dispersing elements do not completely meet the present and future requirements. Therefore, new materials and solutions have to be developed, not only to realize future astronomical facilities, but also to improve the performances of already available instruments and devices. In this context, the use of photopolymeric materials for the production of Volume Phase Holographic Gratings (VPHGs) is becoming an interesting approach thanks to their key properties, in particular the self-developing, high sensitivity and the simple manufacturing process. Here, the main design parameters and the strategy to address them will be presented considering the whole UV-NIR spectral range showing the actual capabilities together with the results obtained on real observing astronomical facilities.
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