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NASA NTRS1988

Grazing incidence reflectance of SiC films produced by plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition

The grazing incidence reflectance of silicon carbide films produced by plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition has been evaluated in the spectral region from 256 to 1216 A. The results show that reflectivities higher than conventional coatings can be obtained on coatings deposited both on silicon wafers and quartz substrates. Potential application of silicon carbide films for EUV astronomical instruments will be discussed.

Keski-Kuha, Ritva A. M.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Contamination of grazing incidence EUV mirrors - An assessment

Contamination assessment for space optical systems requires an understanding of the sensitivity of component performance, e.g. mirror reflectance, to materials deposited on the mirror surface. In a previous study, the sensitivity of typical normal incidence mirror coatings to surface deposits of generic hydrocarbons was reported. Recent activity in the development of grazing incidence telescopes for extreme ultraviolet space astronomy has stimulated the need for a similar assessment in the spectral region extending from approximately 100 A to 1000 A. The model used for analysis treats the contamination layer as a continuous thin film deposited on the mirror surface. The mirror surfaces selected for this study are opaque vacuum deposited gold and the uncoated and polished Zerodur. Scatter caused by film irregularities or particulates are not included in this assessment. Parametric evaluations at 100, 500, and 1000 A determine the sensitivity of mirror reflectance to a range of optical constants selected for the generic contaminants. This sensitivity analysis combined with the limited amount of optical data in the EUV for hydrocarbons, is used to select representative optical constants for the three wavelength regions. Reflectance versus contamination layer thickness curves are then calculated and used to determine critical thickness limits based on allowable reflectance change. Initial observations indicate that thickness limits will be highly dependent on the real part of the complex index of refraction of the contaminant film being less than 1.0. Preliminary laboratory measurements of samples contaminated with some commonly encountered hydrocarbons confirm trends indicated in the analytical studies.

Osantowski, John F.↗

NASA NTRS1988

The flight test of a grazing incidence relay optics telescope for solar X-ray astronomy utilizing a thinned, back-illuminated CCD detector

The new AS&E Ultrahigh Resolution Soft X-ray Solar Research Rocket Payload has been successfully flown twice on Black Brant IX Sounding Rockets from White Sands Missile Range. These flights, conducted on 15 August 1987 and 11 December 1987, provided the first test of the new payload which consists of 3.8X magnifying hyperboloid-hyperboloid grazing incidence relay optic used in conjunction with an existing Wolter-I primary mirror. An RCA SID 500 series CCD detector was utilized in a thinned, back-illuminated configuration for recording the images. The 5.4 m effective focal length of the compound optics system resulted in a plate scale of 1 arc second per pixel which is comparable to the inherent resolution of the primary mirror. These flights represent the first use in X-ray astronomy of either of these two new technologies. These observations are presented with comparison to laboratory measurements and theoretical expectations of the instrument performance.

Moses, J. Daniel↗

NASA NTRS1989

The design and evaluation of grazing incidence relay optics

X-ray astronomy, both solar and celestial, has many needs for high spatial resolution observations which have to be performed with electronic detectors. If the resolution is not to be detector limited, plate scales in excess of 25 microns arc/sec, corresponding to focal lengths greater than 5 m, are required. In situations where the physical size is restricted, the problem can be solved by the use of grazing incidence relay optics. A system was developed which employs externally polished hyperboloid-hyperboloid surfaces to be used in conjunction with a Wolter-Schwarzschild primary. The secondary is located in front of the primary focus and provides a magnification of 4, while the system has a plate scale of 28 microns arc/sec and a length of 1.9 m. The design, tolerance specification, fabrication and performance at visible and X-ray wavelengths of this optical system are described.

Davis, John M.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Review of grazing incidence optics fabrication techniques for X-ray astronomy

This paper covers the various techniques that are currently being used and developed to fabricate grazing incidence X-ray optics for the energy range from about 0.2 to 20 keV. Techniques covered will include diamond turning, thin foils, epoxy/carbon-fiber replication, electroforming replication, and float glass/Kirkpatrick-Baez techniques.

Ulmer, Melville P.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Synthetic aperture radar imagery of airports and surrounding areas: Study of clutter at grazing angles and their polarimetric properties

The statistical description of ground clutter at an airport and in the surrounding area is addressed. These data are being utilized in a program to detect microbursts. Synthetic aperture radar data were collected at the Denver Stapleton Airport. Mountain terrain data were examined to determine if they may potentially contribute to range ambiguity problems and degrade microburst detection. Results suggest that mountain clutter may not present a special problem source. The examination of clutter at small grazing angles was continued by examining data collected at especially low altitudes. Cultural objects such as buildings produce strong sources of backscatter at angles of about 85 deg, with responses of 30 dB to 60 dB above the background. Otherwise there are a few sources which produce significant scatter. The polarization properties of hydrospheres and clutter were examined with the intent of determining the optimum polarization. This polarization was determined to be dependent upon the ratio of VV and HH polarizations of both rain and ground clutter.

Onstott, Robert G.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Fabrication of a grazing incidence telescope by grinding and polishing techniques on aluminum

The paper describes the fabrication processes, by grinding and polishing, used in making the mirrors for a f/2.8 Wolter type-I grazing incidence telescope at Boulder (Colorado), together with testing procedure used to determine the quality of the images. All grinding and polishing is done on specially designed machine that consists of a horizontal spindle to hold and rotate the mirror and a stroke arm machine to push the various tools back and forth along the mirrors length. The progress is checked by means of the ronchi test during all grinding and polishing stages. Current measurements of the telescope's image quality give a FWHM measurement of 44 arcsec, with the goal set at 5-10 arcsec quality.

Gallagher, Dennis↗

NASA NTRS1992

Optimal grazing incidence optics and its application to wide-field X-ray imaging

A class of high-resolution, efficient, and wide-field grazing incidence optics is discussed. Optical designs for searching efficiently for distant X-ray clusters are developed. It is shown that a rather general procedure exists for the design of an optical mission if well-defined scientific goals can be provided. Clusters of galaxies with an angular diameter of about 5 arcsec over a field of about 1 deg are resolved so that a comprehensive deep search is possible with a payload of 1/10 the linear dimensions of AXAF. By dropping the requirement for perfect on-axis imagery, searching within a suitably general class of telescope design, and optimizing a quantity directly related to the scientific requirement, it is shown that satisfactory designs do exist. The resulting telescope is shown to be no more difficult to fabricate than existing mirrors, and it can be nested.

Burrows, Christopher J.↗

NASA NTRS1992

X-ray testing of grazing incidence optics fabricated at the University of Colorado

An account is given of the methods and results of X-ray testing for the grazing-incidence optics of the F/5.73 Wolter Type I telescope, whose mirror had flown on a NASA sounding rocket in March, 1991. Attention is given to the tests of the inplane (full aperture) and offplane (apodized aperture) imaging response at 0.25-1.50 keV energies; correlations with surface figures are discussed.

Gallagher, Dennis↗

NASA NTRS1992

Grazing incidence X-ray reflectivity - Studies for the AXAF observatory

The energy bandwidth and total throughput of a grazing incidence optics system is a strong function of the X-ray reflectivity of the surface coating. In support of the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF), studies are underway to evaluate and characterize the reflectivity of potential AXAF coatings. Here we report on results obtained for Au, Ir, and Ni coatings produced by electron-beam evaporation, evaporation with ion-assist, and sputtering. Effects of coating thickness and deposition angle have been evaluated at 6.4 and 8.1 keV; the highest reflectivities are those of the thinner, about 200 A vs about 700 A, coatings. While considerable variations exist, the best Ir samples have higher reflectivity than any of the Au coatings. Data results have been compared with models for theoretical reflectivity, particularly with regard to the effective density of the coatings. Independent measurements of the coating densities have been carried out for comparison with the reflectivity results.

Slane, P.↗

NASA NTRS1997

Cycling of DMSP and DMS in Surface Ocean Waters: The Impact of Microzooplankton Grazing and Metabolism

We have explored and identified several novel aspects of dimetylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) metabolism and dimetylsulfide (DMS) production by microbial food web processes. Processes studied include: microzooplankton herbivory, uptake and retention of dissolved (DMSP) by marine bacteria, coupled with microzooplankton bacterivory, and generation of (DMS) as a byproduct of chemical grazing deterrence by Emiliania huxleyi. Our results illustrate the complexities of DMSP cycling and DMS production, and support the idea that the flux of DMS to the atmosphere is the result of many coupled trophic interactions which are not currently predictable by simple models or observations tied to a few bulk parameters. Although it is highly desirable to measure trophic interactions by remote sensing techniques, satellite methods cannot currently yield information on bacterial or microzooplankton abundances, activities, and processes. We have identified specific processes which must be included in future efforts, but we do not know yet how widespread or important these will be in many natural waters. We believe further work will enable us to simplify our model of DMS production by eliminating second order processes, and help refine our insight into the primary biological and chemical sources of atmospheric DMS. This is fundamental work which should be supported as basic research.

Sherr, Evelyn↗

NASA NTRS1997

Grazing Incidence Nickel Replicated Optics for Hard X-ray Telescopes

The requirements for future hard x-ray (up to 50 keV) telescopes are lightweight, high angular resolution optics with large collecting areas. Grazing incidence replicated optics are an excellent candidate for this, type of mission, providing better angular resolution, comparable area/unit mass, and simpler fabrication than multilayer-coated foils. Most importantly, the technology to fabricate the required optics currently exists. A comparison of several hard x-ray telescope designs will be presented.

Peturzzo, J. J., III↗

NASA NTRS1999

Development of a Grazing Incidence X-Ray Interferometer

A grazing incidence x-ray interferometer design capable of micro-arcsecond level resolution is discussed. This practical design employs a Michelson Stellar interferometer approach to create x-ray interference fringes without the use of Wolter style optics or diffraction crystals. Design solutions accommodating alignment, vibration, and thermal constraints are reviewed. We present the development and demonstration of a working experiment along with tolerance studies, data analysis, and results.

Shipley, Ann↗

NASA NTRS1999

Grazing Incidence Optics for X-rays Interferometry

Grazing incidence mirror parameters and constraints for x-ray interferometry are described. We present interferometer system tolerances and ray trace results used to define mirror surface accuracy requirements. Mirror material, surface figure, roughness, and geometry are evaluated based on analysis results. We also discuss mirror mount design constraints, finite element analysis, environmental issues, and solutions. Challenges associated with quantifying high accuracy mirror surface quality are addressed and test results are compared with theoretical predictions.

Shipley, Ann↗

NASA NTRS1999

Effectiveness of Near-Grazing Incidence Reflection in Creating the Rotationally Modulated Lanes in the Jovian Hectometric Radio Emission Spectrum

The Galileo plasma wave instrument has identified a narrow (in frequency) attenuation band in the hectometric emission that varies in frequency with system 3 longitude. It is possible to model this emission band assuming a high-latitude cyclotron source region with emission that is efficiently attenuated when the ray path is nearly tangent to an L shell that is close to the Io flux tube. The data suggest that the mechanism for attenuating the emission is very efficient, with the ratio of attenuated to unattenuated emission I/I(sub o) < 0.02, and not a strong function of frequency. In this paper we demonstrate that incoherent scattering alone cannot explain the attenuation lane, which does not preclude coherent scattering by uncertain processes. We find rather that the source of attenuation is consistent with near-grazing incidence reflection of emission from an L shell that is near the Io flux tube (a caustic surface).

Menietti, J. D.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Production of Star-Grazing and Star-Impacting Planetestimals via Orbital Migration of Extrasolar Planets

During the orbital migration of a giant extrasolar planet via ejection of planetesimals (as studied by Murray et al. in 1998), inner mean-motion resonances can be strong enough to cause planetesimals to graze or impact the star. We integrate numerically the motions of particles which pass through the 3:1 or 4:1 mean-motion resonances of a migrating Jupiter-mass planet. We find that many particles can be trapped in the 3:1 or 4:1 resonances and pumped to high enough eccentricities that they impact the star. This implies that for a planet migrating a substantial fraction of its semimajor axis, a fraction of its mass in planetesimals could impact the star. This process may be capable of enriching the metallicity of the star at a time when the star is no longer fully convective. Upon close approaches to the star, the surfaces of these planetesimals will be sublimated. Orbital migration should cause continuing production of evaporating bodies, suggesting that this process should be detectable with searches for transient absorption lines in young stars. The remainder of the particles will not impact the star but can be ejected subsequently by the planet as it migrates further inward. This allows the planet to migrate a substantial fraction of its initial semimajor axis by ejecting planetesimals.

Quillen, A. C.↗

NASA NTRS2006

Efficiency of a Grazing-incidence Off-plane Grating in the Soft-x-ray Region

Efficiency measurements of a grazing-incidence diffraction grating in the off-plane mount were performed using polarized synchrotron radiation. The grating had 5000 grooves/mm, an effective blaze angle of 14 deg., and was gold coated. The efficiencies in the two polarization orientations (TM and TE) were measured in the 1.5-5.O nm wavelength range and were compared with the efficiencies calculated using the PCGrate-SX code. The TM and TE efficiencies differ, offering the possibility of performing unique science studies of astrophysical, solar, and laboratory sources by exploiting the polarization sensitivity of the off-plane grating.

Seely, J. F.↗

NASA NTRS2007

An Evaluation of Grazing-Incidence Optics for Neutron Imaging

The refractive index for most materials is slightly less than unity, which opens an opportunity to develop the grazing incidence neutron imaging optics. The ideal material for the optics would be natural nickel and its isotopes. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has active development program on the nickel replicated optics for use in x-ray astronomy. Brief status report on the program is presented. The results of the neutron focusing optic test carried by the MSFC team at National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) are also presented. Possible applications of the optics are briefly discussed.

Gubarev, M. V.↗