The CAMCAO infrared camera

Author(s)

Antonio Amorim, Antonio Melo, Joao Alves, Jose Rebordao, Jose Pinhao, Gregoire Bonfait, Jorge Lima, Rui Barros, Rui Fernandes, Isabel Catarino, Marta Carvalho, Rui Marques, Jean-Marc Poncet, Filipe Duarte Santos, Gert Finger, Norbert Hubin, Gotthard Huster, Franz Koch, Jean-Louis Lizon, Enrico Marchetti

Abstract

The CAMCAO instrument is a high resolution near infrared (NIR) camera

conceived to operate together with the new ESO Multi-conjugate Adaptive

optics Demonstrator (MAD) with the goal of evaluating the feasibility of

Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics techniques (MCAO) on the sky. It is a

high-resolution wide field of view (FoV) camera that is optimized to use

the extended correction of the atmospheric turbulence provided by MCAO.

While the first purpose of this camera is the sky observation, in the

MAD setup, to validate the MCAO technology, in a second phase, the

CAMCAO camera is planned to attach directly to the VLT for scientific

astrophysical studies. The camera is based on the 2kx2k HAWAII2 infrared

detector controlled by an ESO external IRACE system and includes

standard IR band filters mounted on a positional filter wheel. The

CAMCAO design requires that the optical components and the IR detector

should be kept at low temperatures in order to avoid emitting radiation

and lower detector noise in the region analysis. The cryogenic system

inclues a LN2 tank and a sptially developed pulse tube cryocooler. Field

and pupil cold stops are implemented to reduce the infrared background

and the stray-light. The CAMCAO optics provide diffraction limited

performance down to J Band, but the detector sampling fulfills the

Nyquist criterion for the K band (2.2mm).

Organisation(s)

Department of Astrophysics

External organisation(s)

Universidade de Coimbra, European Southern Observatory (Germany), Universidade de Lisboa, National Institute of Engineering, Technology and Innovation (INETI), Universidade Nova de Lisboa

Journal

Proceedings of SPIE

Volume

5492

Pages

1699-1709

ISSN

0277-786X

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1117/12.549008

Publication date

09-2004

Peer reviewed

Yes

Austrian Fields of Science 2012

103004 Astrophysics

Portal url

https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/7d06020b-f149-469a-8cd4-75282403fcb6