An X-ray Polarimeter for Constellation-X
Abstract
Polarimetry remains a largely unexploited technique in observational X-ray astronomy which could provide insight in the study of the strong gravity and magnetic fields at the core of the Constellation-X observational program. Adding a polarization capability to the Constellation-X instrumentation would be immensely powerful. It would make Constellation the first space observatory to simultaneously measure all astrophysically relevant parameters of source X-ray photons; their position (imaging), energy (spectroscopy), arrival time (timing), and polarization. Astrophysical polarimetry requires sensitive well-calibrated instruments. Many exciting objects are extra-galactic (i.e. faint) and may have small polarization. Recent advances in efficiency and bandpass make it attractive to consider a polarimetry Science Enhancement Package for the Constellation-X mission.
Cite
@article{arxiv.astro-ph/0701090,
title = {An X-ray Polarimeter for Constellation-X},
author = {K. Jahoda and K. Black and P. Deines-Jones and J. E. Hill and T. Kallman and T. Strohmayer and J. H. Swank},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:astro-ph/0701090},
year = {2007}
}
Comments
10 pages, white paper submitted to Constellation-X Facility Science Team (Dec 2006)