VIRUS characterization development and results from first batches of delivered units

Briana L. Indahl; Gary J. Hill; Niv Drory; Karl Gebhardt; Sarah Tuttle; Jason Ramsey; Greg Ziemann; Taylor Chonis; Trent Peterson; Andrew Peterson; Brian L. Vattiat; Huan Li; Lei Hao

doi:10.1117/12.2231915

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9 August 2016 VIRUS characterization development and results from first batches of delivered units

Briana L. Indahl, Gary J. Hill, Niv Drory, Karl Gebhardt, Sarah Tuttle, Jason Ramsey, Greg Ziemann, Taylor Chonis, Trent Peterson, Andrew Peterson, Brian L. Vattiat, Huan Li, Lei Hao

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Proceedings Volume 9908, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VI; 990880 (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2231915
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2016, Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Abstract

The Visible Integral Field Replicable Unit Spectrograph (VIRUS), the instrument for the Hobby Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX), consists of 78 replicable units, each with two integral field spectrographs. Each spectrograph has its own 2kx2k CCD detector with 15 micron pixels. Following alignment, the final stage prior to deployment of each unit is characterization of the 156 spectrograph channels and their CCDs. We describe the laboratory calibration system and scripting that automates this process. Both fiber and continuous (non-spatially modulated) input slits are utilized. Photon transfer curves are made to measure the gain and read noise of each CCD. Pixel flats are also made to correct for pixel-to-pixel QE variations. Relative throughput measurements of each unit are made using the same lab fiber bundle for consistency, and fiber profiles are characterized for later use by the CURE data reduction package. Replicable unit instruments provide a cost effective solution for scaling up instruments for large and extremely large class telescopes. Because VIRUS is the first massively replicated instrument, we have the opportunity to examine the end result of variations in the manufacturing processes that go into production. This paper presents the characterization setup for VIRUS units and compares the performance and variability of processed units with specifications for HETDEX.

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Briana L. Indahl, Gary J. Hill, Niv Drory, Karl Gebhardt, Sarah Tuttle, Jason Ramsey, Greg Ziemann, Taylor Chonis, Trent Peterson, Andrew Peterson, Brian L. Vattiat, Huan Li, and Lei Hao "VIRUS characterization development and results from first batches of delivered units", Proc. SPIE 9908, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VI, 990880 (9 August 2016); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2231915

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