Small Solutions to the Large Telescope Problem: A Massively Replicated MEMS Spectrograph

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel approach to astronomical spectroscopy by using a large array of small, inexpensive MEMS-based spectrographs fed by fiber slicing, significantly reducing costs for large telescopes.

Contribution

The paper presents a prototype of a tunable, diffraction-limited spectrograph designed for mass replication, enabling scalable, cost-effective spectroscopy for large telescopes.

Findings

Prototype of a small, tunable J-band spectrograph demonstrated.

Massively replicated spectrograph system reduces costs for large telescopes.

Feasibility of deploying tens of thousands of spectrographs on a single telescope.

Abstract

In traditional seeing-limited observations the spectrograph aperture scales with telescope aperture, driving sizes and costs to enormous proportions. We propose a new solution to the seeing-limited spectrograph problem. A massively fiber-sliced configuration feeds a set of small diffraction-limited spectrographs. We present a prototype, tunable, J-band, diffraction grating, designed specifically for Astronomical applications: The grating sits at the heart of a spectrograph, no bigger than a few inches on a side. Throughput requirements dictate using tens-of-thousands of spectrographs on a single 10 to 30 meter telescope. A full system would cost significantly less than typical instruments on 10m or 30m telescopes.