Dr. Nicole Duncan Profile

Dr. Nicole Duncan

at BAE Systems Inc

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Author

Publications (3)

Proceedings Article | 18 July 2016 Open Access

First flight of the Gamma-Ray Imager/Polarimeter for Solar flares (GRIPS) instrument

Nicole Duncan, P. Saint-Hilaire, A. Shih, G. Hurford, H. Bain, M. Amman, B. Mochizuki, J. Hoberman, J. Olson, B. Maruca, N. Godbole, D. Smith, J. Sample, N. Kelley, A. Zoglauer, A. Caspi, P. Kaufmann, S. Boggs, R. Lin

Proceedings Volume 9905, 99052Q (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2233859

KEYWORDS: Gamma radiation, Solar energy, Imaging spectroscopy, Imaging systems, Sensors, Sun, Calibration, Ions, Spectroscopy, Photons

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The Gamma-Ray Imager/Polarimeter for Solar flares (GRIPS) instrument is a balloon-borne telescope designed to study solar- are particle acceleration and transport. We describe GRIPS's first Antarctic long-duration flight in January 2016 and report preliminary calibration and science results. Electron and ion dynamics, particle abundances and the ambient plasma conditions in solar flares can be understood by examining hard X-ray (HXR) and gamma-ray emission (20 keV to 10 MeV). Enhanced imaging, spectroscopy and polarimetry of are emissions in this energy range are needed to study particle acceleration and transport questions. The GRIPS instrument is specifically designed to answer questions including: What causes the spatial separation between energetic electrons producing hard X-rays and energetic ions producing gamma-ray lines? How anisotropic are the relativistic electrons, and why can they dominate in the corona? How do the compositions of accelerated and ambient material vary with space and time, and why? GRIPS's key technological improvements over the current solar state of the art at HXR/gamma-ray energies, the Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI), include 3D position-sensitive germanium detectors (3D-GeDs) and a single-grid modulation collimator, the multi-pitch rotating modulator (MPRM). The 3D-GeDs have spectral FWHM resolution of a few hundred keV and spatial resolution <1 mm³. For photons that Compton scatter, usually ⪆150 keV, the energy deposition sites can be tracked, providing polarization measurements as well as enhanced background reduction through Compton imaging. Each of GRIPS's detectors has 298 electrode strips read out with ASIC/FPGA electronics. In GRIPS's energy range, indirect imaging methods provide higher resolution than focusing optics or Compton imaging techniques. The MPRM gridimaging system has a single-grid design which provides twice the throughput of a bi-grid imaging system like RHESSI. The grid is composed of 2.5 cm deep tungsten-copper slats, and quasi-continuous FWHM angular coverage from 12.5-162 arcsecs are achieved by varying the slit pitch between 1-13 mm. This angular resolution is capable of imaging the separate magnetic loop footpoint emissions in a variety of are sizes. In comparison, RHESSI's 35-arcsec resolution at similar energies makes the footpoints resolvable in only the largest ares.

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Proceedings Article | 26 September 2013 Paper

Detector and imaging systems for the gamma-ray imager/polarimeter for solar flares (GRIPS) instrument

Nicole Duncan, Albert Shih, Gordon Hurford, Pascal Saint-Hilaire, Andreas Zoglauer, Hazel Bain, Mark Amman, Steven Boggs, Robert Lin

Proceedings Volume 8862, 88620W (2013) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2024667

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Imaging systems, Solar energy, Imaging spectroscopy, Image sensors, Electronics, Cameras, Gamma radiation, Field programmable gate arrays, Sun

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Proceedings Article | 17 September 2012 Paper

The Gamma-Ray Imager/Polarimeter for Solar flares (GRIPS)

Albert Shih, Robert Lin, Gordon Hurford, Nicole Duncan, Pascal Saint-Hilaire, Hazel Bain, Steven Boggs, Andreas Zoglauer, David Smith, Hiroyasu Tajima, Mark Amman, Tadayuki Takahashi

Proceedings Volume 8443, 84434H (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.926450

KEYWORDS: Sensors, Gamma radiation, Electrons, Spatial resolution, Solar processes, Polarization, Imaging systems, Imaging spectroscopy, Spectroscopy, Ions

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