How to cast a giant glass mirror for the worlds largest telescope.Credit– IEEE Spectrum YouTube Channel
Thats where the holograms come in.
Scientists at RPI established a holographic covering that can be put on a flexible substrate that can either “different light with very level of sensitivity or focus light with high resolution,” according to author Mei-Li Hsieh. Those two features would make it particularly helpful as a crucial instrument on a telescope.
Holograms work for more than interesting-looking baubles in gift stores. Products researchers have utilized them for applications from stress/strain determines to information storage systems. It turns out they would also be useful in making extremely lightweight, flexible mirrors for area telescopes. A brand-new research study led by researchers at the Rensselear Polytechnic Institue shows how that might occur.
The research study, published in Nature Scientific Reports, details a technique to create a rollable lens utilizing a holographic coating. Rollable lenses on telescopes have long been searched for, as they permit a much bigger lens, possibly lots of meters across, to suit a fairing that might typically house a much smaller, inflexible, strong glass mirror.
Just what is a Fresnel Lens? Theyre commonly utilized in lighthouses, so heres one to explain.Credit– St. Augustine Lighthouse YouTube Channel
Utilizing two extremely close light sources, the team produced beams that inscribed the holographic film covering the substrate. Overlaying convergence and interference patterns over top of one another can develop a movie that has either high resolution or is burglarized its constituent spectra.
Demo established of the hologram system.Credit– Hsieh et al
. Up until now, the group has actually just evaluated this lens development technique as an experiment– it still has a long way to precede it is prepared to introduce on a satellite and begin gathering starlight. With some more development work, this type of rollable, light-weight lens might show a development technology for massive area telescopes in the future.
Find out more: RPI– Need for Larger Space Telescope Inspires Lightweight Flexible Holographic LensNature Scientific Reports– Experimental realization of a Fresnel hologram as an extremely spectral resolution optical elementPhotonics.com– Holographic Space Telescope Takes Aim at the Next Planet Earth AZO Optics– New Method Produces Lens for Focused Image or Spectrum.
Lead Image: Holographic lens showcasing a complete light spectraCredit– RPI.
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Thats where the holograms come in.
Demo set up of the hologram system.Credit– Hsieh et al
. With some more development work, this type of rollable, lightweight lens could prove an advancement technology for large-scale space telescopes in the future.
A brand-new study led by scientists at the Rensselear Polytechnic Institue shows how that might happen.