The Aperture Array Verification System 1: System overview and early commissioning results
Abstract
The design and development process for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope, the Low Frequency Aperture Array component, was progressed during the SKA pre-construction phase by an international consortium, with the goal of meeting requirements for a critical design review. As part of the development process a full-sized prototype SKA Low station was deployed, the Aperture Array Verification System 1 (AAVS1). We provide a system overview and describe the commissioning results of AAVS1, which is a low frequency radio telescope with 256 dual-polarisation log-periodic dipole antennas working as a phased array. A detailed system description is provided, including an in-depth overview of relevant sub-systems, ranging from hardware, firmware, software, calibration,and control sub-systems. Early commissioning results cover initial bootstrapping, array calibration, stability testing, beam-forming,and on-sky sensitivity validation. Lessons learned are presented, along with future developments.
Cite
@article{arxiv.2110.03217,
title = {The Aperture Array Verification System 1: System overview and early commissioning results},
author = {P. Benthem and R. Wayth and E. de Lera Acedo and K. Zarb Adami and M. Alderighi and C. Belli and P. Bolli and T. Booler and J. Borg and J. W. Broderick and S. Chiarucci and R. Chiello and L. Ciani and G. Comoretto and B. Crosse and D. Davidson and A. DeMarco and D. Emrich and A. van Es and D. Fierro and A. Faulkner and M. Gerbers and N. Razavi-Ghods and P. Hall and L. Horsley and B. Juswardy and D. Kenney and K. Steele and A. Magro and A. Mattana and B. McKinley and J. Monari and G. Naldi and J. Nanni and P. Di Ninni and F. Paonessa and F. Perini and M. Poloni and G. Pupillo and S. Rusticelli and M. Schiaffino and F. Schillirò and H. Schnetler and R. Singuaroli and M. Sokolowski and A. Sutinjo and G. Tartarini and D. Ung and J. G. Bij de Vaate and G. Virone and M. Walker and M. Waterson and S. J. Wijnholds and A. Williams},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2110.03217},
year = {2021}
}