M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System Overview:

M2FS Spectrograph

• Two independent, identical channels

• Each fed by 128 fibers

• Each with LoRes and HiRes modes

• Operates from 370-950 nm

• Operates at NAS-E• Take the tour!

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System Overview:

M2FS Fibers

• Broadband Polymicro fibers

• 150 cores• 10.5 ft long• 256 deployed +

spares• 1.2 arcsec

apertures• 12 sec c-c min

separation• Fiber-end Slits

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System Overview:

Fiber Mount/WFC

• Mounting similar to MMFS (many parts to be re-used)

• New Wide-field Corrector (WFC)

• Mounts to inner boss at NAS-E and usual outer mounting surface.

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System Overview:

Calibration Unit

• Mounts on swing-in arm at secondary cage.

• Seven arc lamps + quartz sources, all upward-looking.

• Fiber-locator system projector, downward looking.

Property

M2FS MMFS FLAMES (VLT) Hecto (MMT)

HiRes LoRes Blue Red UVES GIRAFFE Spec Chelle

Channels 2 2 2 1 1 1 1

# of Fibers 256 256 256 8 132 300 240

Range (nm) 370-950 360-520 500-900 480-900 370-950 370-920

Resolution, 18-34k 0.2-12k 18k 15k 46k 7-24k 1.5-3k 32k

X- Dispersed? Yes No Yes Yes No No No

Fiber Diam. 1.2” 1.4” 1.0” 1.2” 1.5”

Min. Fiber Sep.

12” 14” >30” (Variable) >30” (Variable)

Field Diam. 30 arcmin 20 arcmin 25 arcmin 60 arcmin

Vlimit: S/N=5, 2 hrs, 500 nm, med. seeing

21.5 24.0 20.7 20.5 21.022.5 23.5

20.5

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System Comparisons:

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System status:

• Virtually all of the main spectrograph optics are fabricated, AR-coated and installed in their cells. The only exceptions are the cross-dispersion prisms; one of these is currently being fabricated while the blank for the second one is still to be received from Schott.

• All remaining spectrograph optics are in hand apart from the injection mirrors which are in fabrication.

• The grating exchanger, grating mounts (both HiRes and LoRes) and their associated actuators are completed and installed.

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System status:

• Main optics mounts are completed and installed on the optical bench.

• Cabling for the optical bench has been installed and connected to the main electronics box attached to the instrument cart. The box has been fully wired and tested.

• M2FS fibers are in their final fabrication step prior to shipping from UM. They should all be completed by the end of the first week of April.

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System status:

• A prototype for the fiber mounts (at the spectrograph end) and the associated slit assemblies is being tested.

• Principal electronic components of the Fiber Locator System (FLS) are in final development at Carnegie and UM. FLS C-MOS detectors in hand and in testing.

• The fiber junction box and associated hardware is mostly the same as used in MMFS; this hardware has been shipped from LCO to Pasadena (take the tour).

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System status:

• The new fiber mount and WFC mount is nearing final design and is planned to be completed by mid-May at Rettig.

• WFC lenses have all been fabricated and will be AR-coated at ZC&R with delivery date planned for April 13.

• Work on the final design of the calibration sources and FLS projector (to be mounted at the telescope secondary cage) has begun. Plan is to fabricate these in May.

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

System status:

• M2FS CCDs are in hand. Their installation awaits the completion of the CCD camera heads (underway) and the completion of the new CCD control electronics (under development at Carnegie).

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

Key Upcoming Tasks (at Carnegie):

• Installation and alignment of the large spectrograph optics (currently planned for mid-April).

• Installation of the WFC lenses and integration to the WFC cart (likely in latter half of May).

• End-to-end optical alignment of the M2FS spectrographs and FIRST SPECTRUM (the Sun!) for May at Carnegie.

• Pre-ship review. Depending on the status of the CCDs and cross-dispersion prisms, the best windows for this are the end of June, the end of July or August.

• Packing and shipping of M2FS to LCO (immediately after pre-ship review).

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

Key Upcoming Tasks (at LCO):

• Inspection and assembly of M2FS at LCO (>1.5 mos after shipping from Pasadena; aiming for late Sept-Oct).

• Mechanical fitting tests of WFC and fiber mount and the M2FS spectrograph at NAS-E (approx 1 mo after inspection/assembly; aiming for f/5 run in Oct-Nov).

• On-sky testing and commissioning with shared-risk observations of user-provided fields. New plug plates, filters, etc. required for normal operations are now being quoted (aiming to use UM bright time in Dec after AO run).

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

Additional Points

• Aim to make M2FS available in 2013A UM support.• Users have been polled for LoRes grating options.

First pair will be ordered shortly. Additional gratings can be purchased by interested users.

• Initial filters for order blocking in HiRes mode during testing are soon to be on order.

• Users have been polled for additional filters to be available at commissioning and first regular science operations.

• Updates will be distributed to users every 4-6 weeks through final assembly and commissioning. Please inform your communities and ask if individuals want to be added to our email distribution list.

M2FS SAC Update—March 18, 2012

Future Upgrades

• Echellette for LoRes side (R ~ 10000). Requested as part of a submitted NSF research grant in Nov 2011.

• Robotic fiber plugging. The hooks for this are being incorporated into the WFC/Fiber mounts. Details still in development.

• Trombone-style ADC integrated into the WFC mount. Hooks for this are included in WFC mount design. Preliminary design and costing completed.

• IFUs including a potential feed from the AO system. Still a concept.