English

CCAT: Prime-Cam Optics Overview and Status Update

Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics 2024-07-31 v1 Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics

Abstract

Prime-Cam is a first-generation science instrument for the CCAT Observatory's six-meter aperture Fred Young Submillimeter Telescope (FYST). FYST's crossed-Dragone design provides high optical throughput to take advantage of its unique site at 5600 m on Cerro Chajnantor in Chile's Atacama Desert to reach mapping speeds over ten times greater than current and near-term submillimeter experiments. Housing up to seven independent instrument modules in its 1.8-meter diameter cryostat, Prime-Cam will combine broadband polarization-sensitive modules and spectrometer modules designed for observations in several frequency windows between 210 GHz and 850 GHz to study a wide range of astrophysical questions from Big Bang cosmology to the formation of stars and galaxies in the Epoch of Reionization and beyond. In order to cover this range of frequencies and observation modes, each of the modules contains a set of cold reimaging optics that is optimized for the science goals of that module. These optical setups include several filters, three or four anti-reflection-coated silicon lenses, and a Lyot stop to control the field of view and illumination of the primary mirror, satisfy a series of mechanical constraints, and maximize optical performance within each passband. We summarize the design considerations and trade-offs for the optics in these modules and provide a status update on the fabrication of the Prime-Cam receiver and the design of its 1 K and 100 mK thermal BUSs.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2407.20873,
  title  = {CCAT: Prime-Cam Optics Overview and Status Update},
  author = {Zachary B. Huber and Lawrence T. Lin and Eve M. Vavagiakis and Rodrigo G. Freundt and Victoria Butler and Scott C. Chapman and Steve K. Choi and Abigail T. Crites and Cody J. Duell and Patricio A. Gallardo and Anthony I. Huber and Ben Keller and Alicia Middleton and Michael D. Niemack and Thomas Nikola and John Orlowski-Scherer and Ema Smith and Gordon Stacey and Samantha Walker and Bugao Zou},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2407.20873},
  year   = {2024}
}

Comments

10 pages, 6 figures, presented at SPIE Millimeter, Submillimeter, and Far-Infrared Detectors and Instrumentation for Astronomy XII

R2 v1 2026-06-28T17:58:15.133Z