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The Third Flight of the Marshall Grazing Incidence X-Ray Spectrometer (MaGIXS-3)

The Marshall Grazing Incidence X-ray Spectrometer (MaGIXS) is the first X-ray slitless imaging spectrograph sounding rocket instrument designed to observe spectrally dispersed soft X-ray images of the solar corona over a wide field-of-view. During the first flight of MaGIXS (MaGIXS-1), occurred on 30 July 2021, several emission lines from coronal structures including X-ray bright points were observed. Further, MaGIXS-1 analysis also demonstrated the successful inversion of overlappograms using robust unfolding algorithms. Given the demonstrated success of MaGIXS-1, the second flight of the instrument with a simplified optical design, MaGIXS-2, is scheduled for 2024 to observe high temperature diagnostic emission lines. Results from MaGIXS-1 discovered dominant missing emission lines near 15A, arising from relatively cool plasma that peaks around 2 MK. This wavelength region hosts several closely spaced satellite lines of Fe XVII, Fe XVI and Fe XV ions, which are expected to be enhanced at lower temperatures and are currently unmodeled in the CHIANTI atomic database. This wavelength region offers one of the most unique diagnostics to measure electron temperature, as well as signatures of equilibrium state of the plasma in active regions, which has not been studied so far. The goal of MaGIXS-3 mission is the to determine coronal heating parameters, such as the spatial and temporal properties of coronal heating events, by measuring discriminating observations, such as electron temperature, effective temperature, density, abundance, and departures from thermal equilibrium of the plasma, by observing the Sun in the SXR wavelength range. To meet this goal, the MaGIXS instrument will be upgraded with a new X-ray telescope mirror that will provide higher spatial and spectral resolution and throughput, allowing for spectral lines to be observed at the relevant spatial and temporal scales. In addition, MaGIXS-3 will also carry The Resolving Inversion Context X-ray Spectrometer (TRICXS), a high dispersion Bragg crystal spectrometer to spectrally resolve the lines near 14.9 to 15.9A, critical to unlock the full diagnostic potential of this wavelength range. Here we will present the preliminary concept design of MaGIXS-3 and discuss the potential observations.

X-ray Imaging↗

Grazing incidence metal optics for the Berkeley Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer satellite - A progress report

The four flight Wolter-Schwarzschild mirrors currently under fabrication for the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer (EUVE) satellite are described. The principal figuring operation of these grazing incidence metal mirrors (gold over nickel on an aluminum substrate) is carried out by diamond turning at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories. Turning has been accomplished and optical testing results analyzed for three of the mirrors. As-turned values of 1.7 arc sec full width at half maximum (FWHM) and half energy width (HEW) of 5 arc seconds in the visible have been achieved. These results illustrate the great potential of precision fabrication technology for the production of large grazing incidence optics.

Finley, D.↗

X-ray Evaluation of the Marshall Grazing Incidence X-Ray Spectrometer (MaGIXS) Nickel-Replicated Mirrors

X-ray observations of astronomical objects provides diagnostics not available in any other wavelength regime, however the capability of making these observation at a high spatial resolution has proven challenging. Recently, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has made good progress in employing computer numerical control (CNC) polishing techniques on electroless nickel mandrels as part of our replicated grazing incidence optics program. CNC polishing has afforded the ability to deterministically refine mandrel figure, thereby improving mirror performance. The Marshall Grazing Incidence X-ray Spectrometer (MaGIXS) is a MSFC-led sounding rocket instrument that is designed to make the first ever soft x-ray spectral observations of the Sun spatially resolved along a narrow slit. MaGIXS incorporates some of the first mirrors produced at MSFC using this polishing technique. Here we present the predicted mirror performance obtained from metrology, after completion of CNC polishing, as well as the results of X-ray tests performed on the MaGIXS telescope mirror before and after mounting.

MaGIXS X-ray Tests↗

Electroformed grazing incidence X-ray mirrors for a mirror array telescope

Grazing incidence Wolter type I mirrors for higher-energy X-rays have been replicated from two superpolished mandrels by electroforming. Single mirrors and a nested pair were tested with 1.5- and 6.4-keV X-rays, and their subminute of arc resolution and reflectivity close to the theoretical values are confirmed. The design of the mandrels, the mirror mounting scheme, and results of the X-ray test are presented. The microroughnesses of the mirrors measured using an optical profilometer were compared with the X-ray test results.

Ulmer, Melville P.↗

Grazing incidence reflection coefficients of rhodium, osmium, platinum, and gold from 50 to 300 A

Reflectance measurements were made of several metals illuminated from various angles with light at 14 wavelengths in the interval 46.5-283 A. The metals, Rh, Os, Pt and Au were deposited as 125 A films on a binding substrate through electron beam epitaxy. Measurements were made with a grazing incidence monochromator and a reflectometer. The data generally showed lowered reflectance with increasing angles of illumination and shorter wavelengths. The reflectance peak, however, was located at wavelengths of 100-160 A, particularly at large grazing incidences. The wavelengths correspond with the 5p to epsilon-d transition in all of the elements. Rh displayed the highest overall reflectance, and both Rh and Os were more efficient than Au or Pt.

Hettrick, M. C.↗

Adjustable Grazing-Incidence X-Ray Optics

With its unique subarcsecond imaging performance, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory illustrates the importance of fine angular resolution for x-ray astronomy. Indeed, the future of x-ray astronomy relies upon x-ray telescopes with comparable angular resolution but larger aperture areas. Combined with the special requirements of nested grazing-incidence optics, mass, and envelope constraints of space-borne telescopes render such advances technologically and programmatically challenging. The goal of this technology research is to enable the cost-effective fabrication of large-area, lightweight grazing-incidence x-ray optics with subarcsecond resolution. Toward this end, the project is developing active x-ray optics using slumped-glass mirrors with thin-film piezoelectric arrays for correction of intrinsic or mount-induced distortions.

O'Dell, Stephen L.↗

Grazing-Incidence Neutron Optics based on Wolter Geometries

The feasibility of grazing-incidence neutron imaging optics based on the Wolter geometries have been successfully demonstrated. Biological microscopy, neutron radiography, medical imaging, neutron crystallography and boron neutron capture therapy would benefit from high resolution focusing neutron optics. Two bounce optics can also be used to focus neutrons in SANS experiments. Here, the use of the optics would result in lower values of obtainable scattering angles. The high efficiency of the optics permits a decrease in the minimum scattering vector without lowering the neutron intensity on sample. In this application, a significant advantage of the reflective optics over refractive optics is that the focus is independent of wavelength, so that the technique can be applied to polychromatic beams at pulsed neutron sources.

Gubarev, M. V.↗

Computer-Controlled Cylindrical Polishing Process for Development of Grazing Incidence Optics for Hard X-Ray Region

The presentation includes grazing incidence X-ray optics, motivation and challenges, mid spatial frequency generation in cylindrical polishing, design considerations for polishing lap, simulation studies and experimental results, future scope, and summary. Topics include current status of replication optics technology, cylindrical polishing process using large size polishing lap, non-conformance of polishin lap to the optics, development of software and polishing machine, deterministic prediction of polishing, polishing experiment under optimum conditions, and polishing experiment based on known error profile. Future plans include determination of non-uniformity in the polishing lap compliance, development of a polishing sequence based on a known error profile of the specimen, software for generating a mandrel polishing sequence, design an development of a flexible polishing lap, and computer controlled localized polishing process.

Khan, Gufran Sayeed↗

The Next Generation Marshall Grazing Incidence X-Ray Spectrometer (MaGIXS) Sounding Rocket Experiments

The Marshall Grazing Incidence X-ray Spectrometer (MaGIXS) is a sounding rocket experiment that carries an X-ray slitless imaging spectrograph to observe spectrally dispersed soft X-ray (SXR) images of the solar corona over a wide field-of-view. The first flight of MaGIXS occurred on 30 July 2021, during which several emission lines from coronal structures including X-ray bright points were observed. Analysis of MaGIXS-1 data demonstrated the application of new inversion techniques and opened a new arena of inverting complex spectroheliogram data, which has spatial-spectral information overlapped. The second flight of MaGIXS, with a simplified optical design, is scheduled for 2024. The goal of MaGIXS-2 is to observe high temperature diagnostic emission lines within an active region core. MaGIXS-1 discovered dominant missing emission lines near 15Å wavelength region, which hosts several closely spaced satellite lines of Fe XVII, Fe XVI, and Fe XV ions, arising from relatively cool plasma that peaks near 2MK. These lines are expected to be enhanced at lower temperatures and offers one of the most unique diagnostics to measure electron temperature, as well as signatures of equilibrium state of the plasma in active regions, which has not been studied so far. The science goal of the third sounding rocket flight of MaGIXS is to determine coronal heating parameters, such as the spatial and temporal properties of coronal heating events, by measuring discriminating observations, such as electron temperature, effective temperature, density, abundance, and departures from thermal equilibrium of the plasma, by observing the Sun in the SXR wavelength range. For this, the MaGIXS instrument will be upgraded with a new X-ray telescope mirror that will provide higher spatial and spectral resolution and throughput, allowing for spectral lines to be observed at the relevant spatial and temporal scales. In addition, MaGIXS-3 will also carry The Resolving Inversion Context X-ray Spectrometer (TRICXS), a high dispersion Bragg crystal spectrometer to spectrally resolve the lines near 15Å, critical to unlock the full diagnostic potential of this wavelength range. Here we will present the preliminary concept design of MaGIXS-3 and discuss the potential observations.

X-ray Imaging↗

Astronomical applications of grazing incidence telescopes with polynomial surfaces

The report has examined the claim that grazing incidence telescopes having surfaces described by generalized equations have image characteristics superior to those of the paraboloid-hyperboloid and Wolter-Schwarzschild configurations. With emphasis on specific applications in solar and cosmic X-ray/EUV astronomy, raytracing has shown that in many cases there is no advantage in the polynomial design, and in those cases where advantages are theoretically to be expected, the advantages are outweighed by practical considerations.

Cash, W.↗

Marshall Grazing Incidence X-Ray Spectrometer (MaGIXS)

Outline: Scientific motivation for MaGIXS (Marshall Grazing Incidence X-ray Spectrometer) - Demonstrate sensitivity of MaGIXS to determine high temperature plasma; Instrument design - Challenges involved; Instrument status - alignment and calibration.

Athiray, P. S.↗

Design, Testing, and Implementation of the Marshall Grazing Incidence X-ray Spectrometer Slit-Jaw Context Imaging System

The Marshall Grazing Incidence X-ray Spectrometer (MaGIXS) is a NASA sounding rocket payload providing a 0.6 – 2.5 nm spectrum with unprecedented spatial and spectral resolution. The instrument is comprised of a novel optical design, featuring a Wolter 1 grazing mirror in the telescope module focusing the solar image on a slit plate; two corrective optics, a diffraction grating and a low-noise detector make up the spectrometer module. When MaGIXS flies on a suborbital launch in 2020, a slit-jaw camera system will image the sun in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) to soft x-ray wavelengths, providing a reference for pointing the telescope and aligning the data to supporting observations from satellites.

Phillip Wilkerson↗

Near anastigmatic grazing incidence telescope

A performance capability assessment is presently conducted for short versus long grazing incidence telescope designs, in view of the observation that the field curvature and astigmatism that are the primary residual aberrations of a Wolter-type incidence telescope can be substantially reduced through mirror length reduction. A major advantage of the short element telescope is that, if sufficiently short, both the paraboloid and hyperboloid surfaces may be fabricated as a single piece; this significantly facilitates the task of alignment.

Korsch, D.↗

Design of grazing-incidence X-ray telescopes. I.

The theoretical and practical constraints on designs of grazing-incidence X-ray telescopes are discussed. It is shown that there is a maximum useful diameter for an X-ray telescope. It is further shown that when practical constraints are considered, the maximum reflecting area is not necessarily achieved by utilizing the largest available area within this diameter. Equations are derived that allow rapid calculation of the effective area of an X-ray telescope before one proceeds to detailed studies utilizing Monte Carlo techniques.

Weisskopf, M. C.↗