The image derotator is an integral part of the AO188 System at Subaru Telescope. In this article software control,
characterization and integration issues of the image derotator for AO188 System presented. Physical limitations of the
current hardware reviewed. Image derotator synchronization, tracking accuracy, and problem solving strategies to
achieve requirements presented. It's use in different observation modes for various instruments and interaction with the
telescope control system provides status and control functionality. We describe available observation modes along with
integration issues. Technical solutions with results of the image derotator performance presented. Further improvements
and control software for on-sky observations discussed based on the results obtained during engineering observations.
An overview of the requirements, the final control method, and the structure of its control software is shown. Control
limitations and accepted solutions that might be useful for development of other instrument's image derotators presented.
The Subaru laser guide star adaptive optics (AO) system was installed at the Nasmyth focus of the Subaru
Telescope, and had the first light with natural guide star on October 2006. The AO system has a 188-element
curvature based wavefront sensor with photon-counting avalanche photodiode (APD) modules. It measures high-order
terms of wavefront using either of a single laser (LGS) or natural guide star (NGS) within a 2' diameter
field. The AO system has also a source simulator. It simulates LGS and NGS beams, simultaneously, with and
without atmospheric turbulence by two turbulent layer at about 0 and 6 km altitudes, and reproduces the cone
effect for the LGS beam. We describe the design, construction, and integration of the curvature wavefront sensor
and calibration source unit.
We have developed a dichroic beam splitter for the Subaru AO188, which reflects optical light (0.4-0.9 &mgr;m) for
wavefront sensing and transmits near-infrared light (0.93-5.2 &mgr;m) for science observations. The beam splitter
is made of 145mm × 200mm calcium fluoride substrate coated by fluoride and metal chalcogen compound
multilayer, which should be a best way to realize high transmittance over wide wavelength range in the near
infrared. However, since typical fluoride soft coating is less resistant to the moisture in the air, the fluoride
coating become damaged as we use on the AO188 optical bench which is placed in the room temperature
condition. We have performed several accelerated endurance tests of the beam splitter under high-humidity
condition by changing the design of the coatings, and found an optimal solution with an oxide protection layer
which prevents the damage of the dichroic coating and keeps high transmittance at near-infrared wavelength. In
this paper, we report the results of the endurance tests and the performance of our dichroic beam splitter.
Actual measurement of vibrating shape of a bimorph deformable mirror is presented to discuss the characteristics
of resonance. Understanding the vibration properties of a bimorph deformable mirror is a key issue to overcome
resonance problem, a major drawback of this type of deformable mirror, and to make full use of its advantages.
Two-dimensional vibrating shape of the deformable mirror surface, not only at a point, is essential to figure out
the resonance behavior. The results are informative for improvement of mechanical design or control software.
The current status and recent results, since last SPIE conference at Orlando in 2006, for the laser guide star adaptive optics system for Subaru Telescope is presented. We had a first light using natural guide star and succeed to launch the sodium laser beam in October 2006. The achieved Strehl ratio on the 10th magnitude star was around 0.5 at K band. We confirmed that the full-width-half-maximum of the stellar point spread function is smaller than 0.1 arcsec even at the 0.9 micrometer wavelehgth. The size of the artificial guide star by the laser beam tuned at the wavelength of 589 nm was estimated to be 10 arcsec. The obtained blurred artificial guide star is caused by the wavefront error on the laser launching telescope. After the first light and first launch, we found that we need to modify and to fix the components, which are temporarily finished. Also components, which were postponed to fabricate after the first light, are required to build newly. All components used by the natural guide star adaptive optics system are finalized recently and we are ready to go on the sky. Next engineering observation is scheduled in August, 2008.
The purpose of this paper is to report on the current status of developing the new laser guide star (LGS) facility for the Subaru LGS adaptive optics (AO) system. Since two major R&D items, the 4W-class sum-frequency generating laser1 and the large-area-core photonic crystal fiber2, have been successfully cleared, we are almost ready to install the LGS facility to the Subaru Telescope. Also we report the result for LGS generation in Japan.
We developed a high power and high beam quality 589 nm coherent light source by sum-frequency generation in order to utilize it as a laser guide star at the Subaru telescope. The sum-frequency generation is a nonlinear frequency conversion in which two mode-locked Nd:YAG lasers oscillating at 1064 and 1319 nm mix in a nonlinear crystal to generate a wave at the sum frequency. We achieved the qualities required for the laser guide star. The power of laser is reached to 4.5 W mixing 15.65 W at 1064 nm and 4.99 W at 1319 nm when the wavelength is adjusted to 589.159 nm. The wavelength is controllable in accuracy of 0.1 pm from 589.060 and 589.170 nm. The stability of the power holds within 1.3% during seven hours operation. The transverse mode of the beam is the TEM00 and M2 of the beam is smaller than 1.2. We achieved these qualities by the following technical sources; (1) simple construction of the oscillator for high beam quality, (2) synchronization of mode-locked pulses at 1064 and 1319 nm by the control of phase difference between two radio frequencies fed to acousto-optic mode lockers, (3) precise tunability of wavelength and spectral band width, and (4) proper selection of nonlinear optical crystal. We report in this paper how we built up each technical source and how we combined those.
We are developing Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics (LGSAO) system for Subaru Telescope at Hawaii, Mauna Kea. We achieved an all-solid-state 589.159 nm laser in sum-frequency generation. Output power at 589.159 nm reached 4W in quasi-continuous-wave operation. To relay the laser beam from laser location to laser launching telescope, we used an optical fiber because the optical fiber relay is more flexible and easier than mirror train. However, nonlinear scattering effect, especially stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) and stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS), will happen when the inputted laser power increases, i.e., intensity at the fiber core exceed each threshold. In order to raise the threshold levels of each nonlinear scattering, we adopt photonic crystal fiber (PCF). Because the PCF can be made larger core than usual step index fiber (SIF), one can reduce the intensity in the core. We inputted the high power laser into the PCF whose mode field diameter (MFD) is 14 μm and the SIF whose MFD is 5 μm, and measured the transmission characteristics of them. In the case of the SIF, the SRS was happen when we inputted 2 W. On the other hand, the SRS and the SBS were not induced in the PCF even for an input power of 4 W. We also investigated polarization of the laser beam transmitting through the PCF. Because of the fact that the backscattering efficiency of exciting the sodium layer with a narrowband laser is dependent on the polarization state of the incident beam, we tried to control the polarization of the laser beam transmitted the PCF. We constructed the system which can control the polarization of input laser and measure the output polarization. The PCF showed to be able to assume as a double refraction optical device, and we found that the output polarization is controllable by injecting beam with appropriate polarization through the PCF. However, the Laser Guide Star made by the beam passed through the PCF had same brightness as the state of the polarization.
The performance of a deformable mirror with 188 electrodes is reported in this paper. The deformable mirror has been manufactured by CILAS for a new adaptive optics system at Subaru Telescope equipped with laser-guide-star. The type of deformable mirror is bimorph PZT with the blank diameter of 130 mm (beam size 90 mm).
The laser guide star adaptive optics (AO188) system for Subaru Telescope is presented. The system will be installed at the IR Nasmyth platform of Subaru 8 m telescope, whereas the current AO system with 36 elements is operating at the Cassegrain focus. The new AO system has a 188 element wavefront curvature sensor with photon counting APD modules and 188 element bimorph mirror. The laser guide star system has a 4.5 W solid state sum-frequency laser on the Nasmyth platform. The laser launching telescope with 50 cm aperture will be installed at behind the secondary mirror. The laser beam will be transferred to the laser launching telescope using photonic crystal single mode fiber cable. The instrument with the AO system is IRCS, infrared camera and spectrograph which has been used for Cassegrain AO system and new instrument, HiCIAO, high dynamic range infrared camera for exsolar planet detection. The first light of the AO system is planned in 2006.
Subaru AO-188 is a curvature adaptive optics system with 188 elements. It has been developed by NAOJ (National Astronomical Observatory of Japan) in recent years, as the upgrade from the existing 36-element AO system currently in operation at Subaru telescope. In this upgrade, the control scheme is also changed from zonal control to modal control. This paper presents development and implementation of the modal optimization system for this new AO-188. Also, we will introduce some special features and attempt in our implementation, such as consideration of resonance of deformable mirror at the lower order modes, and extension of the scheme for the optimization of the magnitude of membrane mirror in wave front sensor. Those are simple but shall be useful enhancement for the better performance to the conservative configuration with conventional modal control, and possibly useful in other extended operation modes or control schemes recently in research and development as well.
KEYWORDS: Adaptive optics, Telescopes, Stars, Mirrors, Wavefront sensors, K band, Laser systems engineering, Wavefronts, Deformable mirrors, Control systems
The performance of the Cassegrain Adaptive Optics (AO) system of the 8.2 m Subaru Telescope is reported. The system is based on a curvature wavefront sensor with 36 photon-counting avalanche photodiode modules and a bimorph wavefront correcting deformable mirror with 36 driving electrodes. This AO system has been in service since 2002 April for two open-use instruments, an infrared camera and spectrograph (IRCS) and a coronagraph imager with adaptive optics (CIAO). The Strehl ratio in the K-band is around 0.3 when a bright guide star is available under 0".4 seeing condition. High sensitivity of the wavefront sensor allows significant improvement in the image quality, even for faint guide stars down to R=18 mag. The design of the new Nasmyth Adaptive Optics system with 188 control elements under construction is described. This new system with fivefold increase in the number of control elements will provide twice higher Strehl ratio of 0.7. To increase the sky coverage for this new system, a power laser system to produce an artificail guide star in the upper atmosphere is also under construction. The AO system with laser guide capability enables the coverage up to 80% of the entire sky and offers diffraction limited observation for almost any target in the sky. An all solid-state 4W laser to generate the sodium D line emission by summing the two YAG laser frequencies is under development. The generated laser beam is tranmitted through a photonic crystal fiber to the laser launching telescope attached at the backside of the secondary mirror. Expected performance of this laser guide Nasmyth AO system is shown.
The Subaru Telescope LGSAO system is a 188 elements curvature AO system currently under construction, and scheduled to have first light in March 2006 for the Natural Guide Star mode and March 2007 for the Laser Guide Star mode. A particularity of this system will be to perform curvature wavefront sensing with several extra-pupil distances, which significantly improves the closed-loop performance.
An overview of the predicted performance of the system is given for Natural Guide Star and Laser Guide Star modes.
The laser guide star adaptive optics (AO) module for the Subaru Telescope will be installed at the f/13.9 IR Nasmyth focus, and provides the compensated image for the science instrument without change of the focal ratio. The optical components are mounted on an optical bench, and the flexure depending on the telescope pointing is eliminated. The transferred field of view for the science instrument is 2 arcmin diameter, but a 2.7 arcmin diameter field is available for tip-tilt sensing. The science path of the AO module contains five mirrors, including a pair of off-axis parabolic mirrors and a deformable mirror. It has also three additional mirrors for an image rotator. The AO module has a visible 188-element curvature based wavefront sensor (WFS) with photon-counting avalanche photodiode (APD) modules. It measures high-order terms of wavefront using either of a single laser (LGS) or natural guide star (NGS) within a 2 arcmin diameter field. The AO module has also a visible 2 x 2 sub-aperture Shack-Hartmann WFS with 16 APD modules. It measures tip-tilt and slow defocus terms of wavefront by using a single NGS within a 2.7 arcmin diameter field when a LGS is used for high-order wavefront sensing.
The module has also an infrared 2 x 2 sub-aperture Shack-Hartmann WFS with a HgCdTe array as an option. Both high- and low-order visible WFSs have their own guide star acquisition units with two steering fold mirrors. The AO module has also a source simulator. It simulates LGS and NGS beams, simultaneously, with and without atmospheric turbulence by two turbulent layer at about 0 and 6 km altitudes, and
reproduces the isoplanatism and the cone effect for the LGS beam.
The laser guide star adaptive optics (AO) system for Subaru Telescope is presented. The system will be installed at the IR Nasmyth platform, whereas the current AO system with 36 elements is operating at the Cassegrain focus. The new AO system has a 188 element wavefront curvature sensor with photon counting APD modules which is the largest control element curvature sensor system ever. The system will have 4-10 W solid state sum-frequency laser to generate a laser guide star. The laser launching telescope with 50 cm aperture will be installed at behind the secondary mirror. The laser unit will be installed on the third floor of the dome and the laser beam will be transferred to the laser launching telescope using single mode photonic crystal fiber cable.
The field of view of the optics is 2.7 arcmin to maximize the probability to find tilt guide stars for laser guide star operation. The expected Strehl ratio as raw AO performance is 0.46 at H-band under 0.60" seeing with 12 th mag guide star, and 0.71 for 8 th mag stars. New wavefront modulation technique, dual stroke membrane mirror control, is developed to reduce the tilt error which is more dominant for curvature sensor AO system.
The superb contrast imaging capability will be expected as natural guide star system.
The first light as the natural guide star system is planned in March 2006, the laser first light will be expected in March 2007.
As an upgrade plan of Subaru adaptive optics facility, laser-guide-star adaptive-optics (LGSAO) project is on going. One of key components of the project is a deformable mirror (DM). The DM for LGSAO is a bimorph type of PZT with 188 control elements. The specification of design is presented together with the analysis of stroke and vibration properties by FEM.
We present the development status of the laser system for Subaru Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics System. We are manufacturing the quasi-continuous-wave sum frequency laser as a prototype. The optical efficiency of sum frequency generation normalized by the mode-locked fundamental YAG (1064 nm) laser output power is achieved to be 14 % using the non-linear crystal, periodically poled potassium titanyl phosphate (PPKTP). Output power at sodium D2 line was about 260 mW. The optical relay fiber and the laser launching telescope are also described in this paper. For the optical relay fiber, we are testing an index guided photonic crystal fiber (PCF), whose core material is filled by fused silica, and whose clad has close-packed air holes in two dimension. The coupling efficiency was evaluated as about 80 % using 1mW He-Ne laser. We introduce the design of laser launching telescope (LLT), which is a copy of VLT laser launching telescope, and the interface to the Subaru Telescope.
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