High Spectral Resolution Spectroscopy Research Articles

High-resolution M-band Spectroscopy of CO toward the Massive Young Stellar Binary W3 IRS 5

We present in this paper the results of high spectral resolution (R = 88,100) spectroscopy at 4.7 μm with iSHELL/IRTF of hot molecular gas close to the massive binary protostar W3 IRS 5. The binary was spatially resolved, and the spectra of the two sources (MIR1 and MIR2) were obtained simultaneously for the first time. Hundreds of 12CO ν = 0–1, ν = 1–2 lines, and ν = 0–1 transitions of the isotopes of 12CO were detected in absorption and are blueshifted compared to the cloud velocity v LSR = −38 km s−1. We decompose and identify kinematic components from the velocity profiles and apply rotation diagram and curve-of-growth analyses to determine their physical properties. The temperatures and column densities of the identified components range from 30 to 700 K and 1021 to 1022 cm−2, respectively. Our curve-of-growth analyses consider two scenarios. One assumes a foreground slab with a partial covering factor, which well reproduces the absorption of most of the components. The other assumes a circumstellar disk with an outward-decreasing temperature in the vertical direction and reproduces the absorption of all of the hot components. We attribute the physical origins of the identified components to the foreground envelope (<100 K), post-J-shock regions (200–300 K), and clumpy structures on the circumstellar disks (∼600 K). We propose that the components with a J-shock origin are akin to water maser spots in the same region and complement the physical information of water masers along the direction of their movements.

TeraHertz desorption emission spectroscopy (THz DES) of space relevant ices

ABSTRACT We present an experimental instrument that performs laboratory-based gas-phase Terahertz Desorption Emission Spectroscopy (THz-DES) experiments in support of astrochemistry. The measurement system combines a terahertz heterodyne radiometer that uses room temperature semiconductor mixer diode technology previously developed for the purposes of Earth observation, with a high-vacuum desorption gas cell and high-speed digital sampling circuitry to enable high spectral and temporal resolution spectroscopy of molecular species with thermal discrimination. During use, molecules are condensed on to a liquid nitrogen cooled metal finger to emulate ice structures that may be present in space. Following deposition, thermal desorption is controlled and initiated by means of a heater and monitored via a temperature sensor. The ‘rest frequency’ spectral signatures of molecules released into the vacuum cell environment are detected by the heterodyne radiometer in real-time and characterized with high spectral resolution. To demonstrate the viability of the instrument, we have studied Nitrous Oxide (N2O). This molecule strongly emits within the terahertz (sub-millimetre wavelength) range and provide a suitable test gas and we compare the results obtained with more traditional techniques such as quadrupole mass spectrometry. The results obtained allow us to fully characterize the measurement method and we discuss its potential use as a laboratory tool in support of astrochemical observations of molecular species in the interstellar medium and the Solar System.

Experimental realization of a Fresnel hologram as a super spectral resolution optical element

A highly dispersive, diffractive optical element is designed and realized for an extremely high spectral resolution spectroscopy for exoplanet telescope application. Our design uses an annular Fresnel hologram to transform incident starlight directly into a spectrogram. The recording of the hologram is accomplished using two spherical waves of different radius of curvature. The resultant hologram consists of an annular grating structure with a gradually shrinking period as a function of increasing radius. The variable period not only could bring the incoming star-light into focus, but also exhibits a large on-axis chromatic behavior. We demonstrate a dispersion of wavelength 430–700 nm over 190 mm on-axis distance, leading to a super fine spectral resolution 0.0266 nm at wavelength 515 nm for a detector size of 20 µm.

Photoionized Herbig–Haro Objects in the Orion Nebula through Deep High Spectral Resolution Spectroscopy. II. HH 204

Abstract We analyze the physical conditions, chemical composition, and other properties of the photoionized Herbig–Haro (HH) object HH 204 through Very Large Telescope echelle spectroscopy and Hubble Space Telescope imaging. We kinematically isolate the high-velocity emission of HH 204 from the emission of the background nebula and study the subarcsecond distribution of physical conditions and ionic abundances across the HH object. We find that low- and intermediate-ionization emission arises exclusively from gas at photoionization equilibrium temperatures, whereas the weak high-ionization emission from HH 204 shows a significant contribution from higher-temperature shock-excited gas. We separately derive the ionic abundances of HH 204, the emission of the Orion Nebula, and the fainter diffuse blue layer. In HH 204, the O+ abundance determined from collisional excited lines matches the one based on recombination lines, while the O2+ abundance is very low, so that the oxygen abundance discrepancy is zero. The ionic abundances of Ni and Fe in HH 204 have similar ionization and depletion patterns, with total abundances that are a factor of 3.5 higher than in the rest of the Orion Nebula due to dust destruction in the bow shock. We show that a failure to resolve the kinematic components in our spectra would lead to significant error in the determination of chemical abundances (for instance, a 40% underestimate of O), mainly due to incorrect estimation of the electron density.

Optical design for CETUS: a wide-field 1.5-m aperture UV payload being studied for a NASA probe class mission study

As part of a study funded by NASA headquarters, we are developing a probe-class mission concept called the Cosmic Evolution through UV Spectroscopy (CETUS). CETUS includes a 1.5-m aperture diameter telescope with a large field of view (FOV). CETUS includes three scientific instruments: a far ultraviolet (FUV) and near ultraviolet (NUV) imaging camera (CAM); a NUV multiobject spectrograph (MOS); and a dual-channel point/slit spectrograph (PSS) in the Lyman ultraviolet (LUV), FUV, and NUV spectral regions. The large FOV three-mirror anastigmatic (TMA) optical telescope assembly (OTA) simultaneously feeds the three separate scientific instruments. That is, the instruments view separate portions of the TMA image plane, enabling parallel operation by the three instruments. The field viewed by the MOS, whose design is based on an Offner-type spectrographic configuration to provide wide FOV correction, is actively configured to select and isolate numerous field sources using a next-generation micro-shutter array. The two-channel CAM design is also based on an Offner-like configuration. The PSS performs high spectral resolution spectroscopy on unresolved objects over the NUV region with spectral resolving power, R ∼ 40,000, in an echelle mode. The PSS also performs long-slit imaging spectroscopy at R ∼ 20,000 in the LUV and FUV spectral regions with two aberration-corrected, blazed, holographic gratings used in a Rowland-like configuration. The optical system also includes two fine guidance sensors, and wavefront sensors that sample numerous locations over the full OTA FOV. In-flight wavelength calibration is performed by a wavelength calibration system, and flat-fielding is also performed, both using in-flight calibration sources. We describe the current optical design of CETUS and the major trade studies leading to the design.

Metalenses: Advances and Applications

AbstractMetasurfaces, the 2D counterpart of artificial metamaterials, have attracted much attention because of their exceptional ability to manipulate the electromagnetic wave such as amplitude, phase, polarization, propagation direction, and so on. Different from conventional lenses, metalenses based on the metasurface optics are truly flat and compact and exhibit superior performance. In this report, recent progress in the development of metalenses is explored. First, the working principle and characteristics of metalenses are discussed. Then, it is described how the dispersion aberration in metalenses can be eliminated to make them suitable for being employed in a range of applications that are difficult or impossible for traditional lenses. In addition, various metalens‐based applications are introduced, including imaging, high spectral resolution spectroscopy, and multiplex color routing. Furthermore, a survey of reconfigurable and tunable metalenses is conducted. Finally, the report concludes by addressing future prospects of metalenses.

High Spectral Resolution Spectroscopy of Sprites: A Natural Probe of the Mesosphere

AbstractWe present the first high spectral resolution (0.24 nm) spectra of sprites. These spectra were recorded in Europe in the summers and falls of 2015 and 2016 and during January 2017. The use of high spectral resolution has allowed us to resolve for the first time the internal (vibrorotational) structure of the sprite molecular N2 first positive system and to quantify the local gas (rotational) temperature of the mesosphere under the influence of sprites revealing that there is no measurable heating of the atmosphere associated to sprites at the altitudes explored. The temperatures of the explored region of the mesosphere range between 149 K ± 10 K and 226 K ± 20 K. The recorded spectroscopic data also provide valuable quantitative information on the concentrations of some of the vibrational levels of molecular nitrogen involved in transient red‐near‐infrared optical emissions from sprites. The regions of the transient luminous events recorded with our spectrograph (equipped with a horizontally oriented slit) correspond to altitudes in the 66 km to 74 km ± 5 km range.

Observing Exoplanets with High-dispersion Coronagraphy. II. Demonstration of an Active Single-mode Fiber Injection Unit

Abstract High-dispersion coronagraphy (HDC) optimally combines high-contrast imaging techniques such as adaptive optics/wavefront control plus coronagraphy to high spectral resolution spectroscopy. HDC is a critical pathway toward fully characterizing exoplanet atmospheres across a broad range of masses from giant gaseous planets down to Earth-like planets. In addition to determining the molecular composition of exoplanet atmospheres, HDC also enables Doppler mapping of atmosphere inhomogeneities (temperature, clouds, wind), as well as precise measurements of exoplanet rotational velocities. Here, we demonstrate an innovative concept for injecting the directly imaged planet light into a single-mode fiber, linking a high-contrast adaptively corrected coronagraph to a high-resolution spectrograph (diffraction-limited or not). Our laboratory demonstration includes three key milestones: close-to-theoretical injection efficiency, accurate pointing and tracking, and on-fiber coherent modulation and speckle nulling of spurious starlight signal coupling into the fiber. Using the extreme modal selectivity of single-mode fibers, we also demonstrated speckle suppression gains that outperform conventional image-based speckle nulling by at least two orders of magnitude.

Wavelength modulated multiheterodyne spectroscopy using Fabry-Pérot quantum cascade lasers.

Multiheterodyne spectroscopy implemented with semiconductor Fabry-Pérot lasers is a method for broadband (> 20 cm-1), high spectral resolution (~1 MHz) and high time resolution (< 1 µs/spectrum) spectroscopy with no moving parts utilizing off-the-shelf laser sources. The laser stabilization approach demonstrated here enables continuous frequency tuning (at 12.5 Hz repetition rate) while allowing for multiheterodyne wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS). Spectroscopic detection of N2O around 1185 cm-1 is experimentally realized, which shows a direct absorption sensitivity limit of ~1.5⨯10-3/√Hz fractional absorption per mode. This can be lowered using WMS down to 5⨯10-4/√Hz per mode, limited by optical fringes. This approaches the range of sensitivities of standard single-mode laser based spectrometers, which demonstrates that the multiheterodyne method is well-suited for chemical sensing of spectrally broadened absorption features or for multi-species measurements.

Automated Classification of Peach Tree Rootstocks by Means of Spectroscopic Measurements and Signal Processing Techniques

A new frontier of nondestructive measurement exploitation is explored in this paper as concerns the food traceability and control arena. Presented is a method for nondestructive automated peach tree rootstock classification by means of high spectral resolution spectroscopy and multivariate signal processing. Many studies have shown that rootstock has significant impact on the quality and maturity of peach fruits. Rootstock knowledge not only enables fruit traceability but also helps in selecting the best storage condition and marketing channel. A novel automated method is presented to classify peach fruits with respect to their rootstock based on multivariate signal processing of fruit skin reflectance spectra, which are highly affected by physical and biochemical phenomena associated with fruit quality and maturity. The experimental results exploiting measurements of fruit skin reflectance spectra acquired in the visible and near infrared ranges with a high-resolution spectrometer show that automated rootstock classification by spectroscopic measurements and signal processing techniques is feasible and effective and has great potential in horticultural engineering.

ELM-resolved divertor erosion in the JET ITER-Like Wall

Tungsten erosion in H-mode plasmas is quantified in the outer divertor of the JET ITER-Like Wall environment with optical emission spectroscopy on the 400.9 nm atomic neutral tungsten line. A novel cross-calibration procedure is developed to link slow, high spectral resolution spectroscopy and fast photomultiplier tube measurements in order to obtain ELM-resolved photon fluxes. Inter-ELM W erosion is exclusively impurity sputtering by beryllium because of the high sputter threshold for deuterons. Low beryllium concentrations resulted in low inter-ELM sputter yields of around 10−4 with respect to the total flux.Intra-ELM W sources, which dominate the total W tungsten source, vary independently from the inter-ELM source. The amount of W erosion could only be partly explained by beryllium sputtering, indicating that during ELMs sputtering by fuel species is important. The total W outer divertor source is found to linearly increase with the power crossing the separatrix, whilst excessive divertor fueling can break this trend.The influence of the W source rate on the tungsten content of the core plasma is investigated using soft x-ray emission to determine the tungsten content. At low source rates the content is determined by the source, but at higher source rates, other phenomena determine the total tungsten content. Indications of impurity flushing by ELMs is seen at ELM frequencies above approximately 40 Hz. The inner/outer divertor asymmetry of the W source during ELMs is investigated, and the outer divertor W source is larger by a factor of .

Subaru and Swift observations of V652 Herculis: resolving the photospheric pulsation★

High resolution spectroscopy with the Subaru High Dispersion Spectrograph, and Swift ultraviolet photometry are presented for the pulsating extreme helium star V652\,Her. Swift provides the best relative ultraviolet photometry obtained to date, but shows no direct evidence for a shock at ultraviolet or X-ray wavelengths. Subaru has provided high spectral and high temporal resolution spectroscopy over 6 pulsation cycles (and eight radius minima). These data have enabled a line-by-line analysis of the entire pulsation cycle and provided a description of the pulsating photosphere as a function of optical depth. They show that the photosphere is compressed radially by a factor of at least two at minimum radius, that the phase of radius minimum is a function of optical depth and the pulse speed through the photosphere is between 141 and 239 km/s (depending how measured) and at least ten times the local sound speed. The strong acceleration at minimum radius is demonstrated in individual line profiles; those formed deepest in the photosphere show a jump discontinuity of over 70 km/s on a timescale of 150 s. The pulse speed and line profile jumps imply a shock is present at minimum radius. These empirical results provide input for hydrodynamical modelling of the pulsation and hydrodynamical plus radiative transfer modelling of the dynamical spectra.

Deep high spectral resolution spectroscopy and chemical composition of ionized nebulae

AbstractHigh spectral resolution spectroscopy has proved to be very useful for the advancement of chemical abundances studies in photoionized nebulae, such as H II regions and planetary nebulae (PNe). Classical analyses make use of the intensity of bright collisionally excited lines (CELs), which have a strong dependence on the electron temperature and density. By using high resolution spectrophotometric data, our group has led the determination of chemical abundances of some heavy element ions, mainly O++, O+, and C++ from faint recombination lines (RLs), allowing us to deblend them from other nearby emission lines or sky features. The importance of these lines is that their emissivity depends weakly on the temperature and density structure of the gas. The unresolved issue in this field is that recombination lines of heavy element ions give abundances that are about 2–3 times higher than those derived from CELs – in H II regions – for the same ion, and can even be a factor of 70 times higher in some PNe. This uncertainty puts into doubt the validity of face values of metallicity that we use as representative not only for ionized nebulae in the Local Universe, but also for star‐forming dwarf and spiral galaxies at different redshifts. Additionally, high‐resolution data can allow us to detect and deblend faint lines of neutron capture element ions in PNe. This information would introduce further restrictions to evolution models of AGBs and would help to quantify the chemical enrichment in s‐elements produced by low and intermediate mass stars. The availability of an échelle spectrograph at the E‐ELT will be of paramount interest to: (a) extend the studies of heavyelement recombination lines to low metallicity objects, (b) to extend abundance determinations of s‐elements to planetary nebulae in the extragalactic domain and to bright Galactic and extragalactic H II regions. (© 2014 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &amp; Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

High spectral resolution spectroscopy of the SiO fundamental lines in red giants and red supergiants with VLT/VISIR

Context. The mass-loss mechanism in red giants and red supergiants is not yet understood well. The SiO fundamental lines near 8 μm are potentially useful for probing the outer atmosphere, which is essential for clarifying the mass-loss mechanism. However, these lines have been little explored until now.

MASSES AND DISTANCE OF THE YOUNG BINARY NTTS 045251+3016

As part of our continuing campaign to measure the masses of pre-main sequence stars dynamically and thus to assess the reliability of the discrepant theoretical calculations of contraction to the main sequence, we present new results for NTTS 045251+3016, a visual and double-lined spectroscopic binary in the Taurus Star Forming Region. We obtained new high angular resolution astrometry and high spectral resolution spectroscopy at Keck Observatory. The new data lead to a significant revision of previously published orbital parameters. In particular, we find that the masses of the primary and secondary are 0.86+/-0.11 and 0.55+/-0.05 M_sun, respectively, smaller than previously reported, and that the system lies 158.7+/-3.9 pc from the sun, further than previously reported.

Exciton-Related Photoluminescence and Lasing in CdS Nanobelts

We present exciton-related optical studies of cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanobelts. Photoluminescence (PL) properties of CdS nanobelts are analyzed by using high spectral resolution spectroscopy from 10 to 300 K. The PL spectrum at 10 K shows rich spectral features which are identified, by means of temperature-dependent spectral evolution, to be the recom- binations of free excitons, excitons bound to neutral impurities, anddonoracceptorpairs.Thestrongexcitonicemissioninour samples enables the observation of random lasing action at room temperature with a lasing threshold pump density of ∼0.1402 ( 0.0060 MWcm � 2 . Notably, temperature-dependent pump thresholds exhibit a characteristic temperature as high as 195.3 ( 12.7 K, implying a good thermal stability of the lasing behavior and potential high temperature operation. Our studies not only elucidate the intrinsic physical properties of our high quality nanomaterial but also reveal the promising applications in photonics.

The VIR Spectrometer

The Dawn spectrometer (VIR) is a hyperspectral spectrometer with imaging capability. The design fully accomplishes Dawn’s scientific and measurement objectives. Determination of the mineral composition of surface materials in their geologic context is a primary Dawn objective. The nature of the solid compounds of the asteroid (silicates, oxides, salts, organics and ices) can be identified by visual and infrared spectroscopy using high spatial resolution imaging to map the heterogeneity of asteroid surfaces and high spectral resolution spectroscopy to determine the composition unambiguously. The VIR Spectrometer—covering the range from the near UV (0.25 μm) to the near IR (5.0 μm) and having moderate to high spectral resolution and imaging capabilities—is the appropriate instrument for the determination of the asteroid global and local properties. VIR combines two data channels in one compact instrument. The visible channel covers 0.25–1.05 μm and the infrared channel covers 1–5.0 μm. VIR is inherited from the VIRTIS mapping spectrometer (Coradini et al. in Planet. Space Sci. 46:1291–1304, 1998; Reininger et al. in Proc. SPIE 2819:66–77, 1996) on board the ESA Rosetta mission. It will be operated for more than 2 years and spend more than 10 years in space.

VLT‐CRIRES: “Good Vibrations” Rotational‐vibrational molecular spectroscopy in astronomy

AbstractNear‐Infrared high spectral and spatial resolution spectroscopy offers new and innovative observing opportunities for astronomy. The “traditional” benefits of IR‐astronomy – strongly reduced extinction and availability of adaptive optics – more than offset for many applications the compared to CCD‐based astronomy strongly reduced sensitivity. Especially in high resolution spectroscopy interferences by telluric lines can be minimized. Moreover for abundance studies many important atomic lines can be accessed in the NIR. A novel spectral feature available for quantitative spectroscopy are the molecular rotational‐vibrational transitions which allow for fundamentally new studies of condensed objects and atmospheres. This is also an important complement to radio‐astronomy, especially with ALMA, where molecules are generally only observed in the vibrational ground state. Rot‐vib transitions also allow high precision abundance measurements – including isotopic ratios – fundamental to understand the thermo‐nuclear processes in stars beyond the main sequence. Quantitative modeling of atmospheres has progressed such that the unambiguous interpretation of IR‐spectra is now well established. In combination with adaptive optics spectro‐astrometry is even more powerful and with VLT‐CRIRES a spatial resolution of better than one milli‐arcsecond has been demonstrated. Some highlights and recent results will be presented: our solar system, extrasolar planets, star‐ and planet formation, stellar evolution and the formation of galactic bulges (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &amp; Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Fine Structure of Ultraviolet Photoluminescence of Tin Oxide Nanowires

Photoluminescence (PL) properties of tin oxide (SnO2) nanowires are studied in detail using high spectral resolution spectroscopy in a temperature range of 10-300 K. The nanowires have an average diameter of 86 nm. The high quality of the nanowires enables the observation of rich fine structures in the ultraviolet PL spectra at low temperatures. By carefully analyzing the temperature and excitation power dependent spectra, the following emissions are identified: recombination of donor-acceptor pairs, excitons bound to neutral and ionized donor impurities and optical transitions from free electrons to neutral acceptor impurities. Moreover, it is believed that the emission from recombination of free excitons is observed, which is unusual for SnO2, a dipole forbidden direct band gap semiconductor.

THE INTERNAL KINEMATICS OF THE H II GALAXY II Zw 40

We present a study of the kinematic properties of the ionized gas in the dominant giant HII region of the well known HII galaxy: II Zw 40. High spatial and spectral resolution spectroscopy has been obtained using IFU mode on the GMOS instrument at Gemini-North telescope. We have used a set of kinematics diagnostic diagrams, such as the intensity vs. velocity dispersion intensity vs. radial velocity, for global and individual analysis in sub-regions of the nebula. We aim to separate the main line broadening mechanisms responsible for producing a smooth supersonic integrated line profile for the giant HII region. The brightest central region (R ~ 50 pc) is responsible for sigma derived from a single fit to the integrated line profile. The dominant action of gravity, and possibly unresolved winds of young (<10 Myr) massive stars, in this small region should be responsible for the characteristic Halpha velocity profile of the starburst region as a whole. Our observations show that the complex structure of the interstellar medium of this galactic scale star-forming region is very similar to that of nearby extragalactic giant HII regions in the Local Group galaxies.