Paper
8 May 2012 Wide-field-of-view millimeter-wave telescope design with ultra-low cross-polarization
Bruce E. Bernacki, James F. Kelly, David Sheen, Brian Hatchell, Patrick Valdez, Jonathan Tedeschi, Thomas Hall, Douglas McMakin
Author Affiliations +
Abstract
As millimeter-wave arrays become available, off-axis imaging performance of the fore optics increases in importance due to the relatively large physical extent of the arrays. Typically, simple optical telescope designs are adapted to millimeter-wave imaging but single-mirror spherical or classic conic designs cannot deliver adequate image quality except near the optical axis. Since millimeter-wave designs are quasi-optical, optical ray tracing and commercial design software can be used to optimize designs to improve off-axis imaging as well as minimize cross-polarization. Methods that obey the Dragone-Mizuguchi condition for the design of reflective millimeter-wave telescopes with low cross-polarization also provide additional degrees of freedom that offer larger fields of view than possible with single-reflector designs. Dragone's graphical design method does not lend itself readily to computer-based optical design approaches, but subsequent authors expanded on Dragone's geometric design approach with analytic expressions that describe the location, shape, off-axis height and tilt of the telescope elements that satisfy Dragone's design rules and can be used as a first-order design for subsequent computer-based design and optimization. We investigate two design variants that obey the Dragone-Mizuguchi conditions that exhibit ultra-low cross-polarization and a large diffraction-limited field of view well suited to millimeter-wave imaging arrays.
© (2012) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Bruce E. Bernacki, James F. Kelly, David Sheen, Brian Hatchell, Patrick Valdez, Jonathan Tedeschi, Thomas Hall, and Douglas McMakin "Wide-field-of-view millimeter-wave telescope design with ultra-low cross-polarization", Proc. SPIE 8362, Passive and Active Millimeter-Wave Imaging XV, 836207 (8 May 2012); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.917773
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Cited by 2 scholarly publications.
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KEYWORDS
Optical instrument design

Reflectors

Optical design

Polarization

Millimeter wave imaging

Mirrors

Telescopes

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