Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-8bljj Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-04T23:14:43.583Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Soft X-Ray Instrumentation for Space Experiments

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 March 2019

W. P. Reidy*
Affiliation:
American Science and Engineering, Inc., *Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142
Get access

Extract

This paper will discuss some of the techniques used for soft x-ray astronomy (10 kev - 0.5 kev). A more extensive treatment will be found in review papers by Giacconi, Reidy, Vaiana, Van Speybroeck and Zehnpfennig and by Giacconi, Gursky and Van Speybroeck. The earliest experiments in x-ray astronomy were performed using mechanically collimated small area ( ∼ 10 cm2) geiger tubes flown in open stabilized rockets. Subsequent improvements in sensitivity have resulted from the use of much larger ( ∼ 1000 cm2) counters and improved background rejection techniques. Important spectral information has been obtained by using gas counters which are operated as proportional counters rather than as geiger tubes and the development of the modulation collimator has significantly improved the obtainable angular resolution. The most promising new technique for x-ray astronomy is the development of grazing incidence x-ray optics .

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © International Centre for Diffraction Data 1969

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Giacconi, R., Reidy, W. P., Vaiana, G. S., Van Speybroeck, L. P. and Zehnpfennig, T. F., “Grazing Incidence Telescopes for X-Ray Astronomy”, Space Sci. Rev. 9:357, (1969).Google Scholar
2. Giacconi, R., Gursky, H. and Van Speybroeck, L. P., “Observational Techniques in X-Ray Astronomy”, Ann. Rev. Astron. Ap. 6:373416, (1968).Google Scholar
3. Giacconi, R., Gursky, H., Paolini, F. R. and Rossi, B. B., “Evidence for X-Ray Sources Outside the Solar System”, Phys. Rev. Letters 9:439442, (1962).Google Scholar
4. Gorenstein, P. and Mickiewicz, S., “Reduction of Cosmic Background in an X-Ray Proportional Counter through Rise Time Discrimination”, Rev. Sci. Inst. 39:816820, (1968).Google Scholar
5. Oda, Minora, “High Resolution X-Ray Collimator with Broad Field of View for Astronomical Use”, Appl. Opt. 4:143, (1965).Google Scholar
6. Rossi, B. B. and Staub, H. H., Ionization Chambers and Counters, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1949.Google Scholar
7. Wilkinson, D. H., Ionization Chambers and Counters, Cambridge university Press, 1950.Google Scholar
8. Korff, S. A., Electron and Nuclear Counters, D. Van Nostrand Co., Inc., New York, 1955.Google Scholar
9. Gurskv, H., Giacconi, R., Gorenstein, P., Waters, J. R., Oda, M., Bradt, H., Garmire, G., and Sreekantan, B. V., “A Measurement of the Angular Size of the X-Ray Source Sco X-l”, Astrophys. J. 144:12491252, (1966).Google Scholar
10. Vaiana, G. S., Reidy, W. P., Zehnpfennig, T., Van Speybroeck, L. P. and Giacconi, R., “X-Ray Structures of the Sun during the Importance In Flare of 8 June 1968”, science 161:564567, (1968).Google Scholar
11. Reidy, W. P., Vaiana, G. S., Zehnpfennig, T. F. and Giacconi, R., “Study of X-ray Images of the Sun at Solar Minimum”, Astrophys. J. 151, 333:3491968.Google Scholar
12. underwood, J. E. and Muney, W. S., “A Glancing Incidence Solar Telescope for the Soft X-Ray Region”, Solar Phys. 1:129144, (1967).Google Scholar
13. Paolini, F. R., Vaiana, G. S., Giacconi, R., Reidy, W. P. and Zehnpfennig, T. F., “Spectroheliograms of X-Ray Flares from OSO-IV”, Midwest Cosmic Ray Conference, Iowa City, 1968.Google Scholar
14. Vaiana, G. S., Paolini, F. R., Giacconi, R., Reidy, W. P. and Zehnpfennig, T. P., “X-Ray Plage Studies from OSO-IV”, Midwest Cosmic Ray Conference, Iowa City,(1968).Google Scholar
15. Compton, A. H. and Allison, S. K., X-Rays in Theory and Experiment, D. Van Nostrand Co., New York, (1963).Google Scholar
16. Kirkpatrick, P. and Baez, A. V., “Formation of Optical Images by X-Rays”, J. Opt. Soc. Am. 38:765774, (1948).Google Scholar
17. McGee, J. F., “An Introduction to Total Reflection X-Ray Microscopy”, in Cosslett, V. E., Engstrom, A., and Pattee, H. H., Editor, X-Ray Microscopy and Microradiography, Academic press, New York, 1957, p. 213233.Google Scholar
18. Wolter, H., “Spiegelsysteme streifenden Einfalls als abbildende Optiken fur Rontgenstrahlen”, Ann. Physik 10:94114, (1952).Google Scholar
19. Wolter, H., “Verallgemeinerte Schwarzschildsche Spiegelsysteme streifender Reflexion als Optiken fur Rontgenstrahlen”, Ann. Physik 10:286295, (1952).Google Scholar