CCAT-prime: Design of the Mod-Cam receiver and 280 GHz MKID instrument module

TL;DR

This paper details the design and development of the Mod-Cam receiver and a 280 GHz MKID instrument module for the CCAT-prime telescope, aiming to enhance broadband submillimeter observations for cosmology and galaxy evolution studies.

Contribution

It introduces the design and status of a novel 280 GHz MKID instrument module and the Mod-Cam receiver for the CCAT-prime telescope, enabling large-scale MKID readout and testing for future instruments.

Findings

Successful design of the Mod-Cam receiver with cryogenic stages

Development of a 280 GHz instrument module with MKID arrays

Cryogenic readout system capable of handling over 10,000 MKIDs

Abstract

Mod-Cam is a first light and commissioning instrument for the CCAT-prime project's six-meter aperture Fred Young Submillimeter Telescope (FYST), currently under construction at 5600 m on Cerro Chajnantor in Chile's Atacama Desert. Prime-Cam, a first-generation science instrument for FYST, will deliver over ten times greater mapping speed than current and near-term facilities for unprecedented 280-850 GHz broadband and spectroscopic measurements with microwave kinetic inductance detectors (MKIDs). CCAT-prime will address a suite of science goals, from Big Bang cosmology to star formation and galaxy evolution over cosmic time. Mod-Cam deployment on FYST with a 280 GHz instrument module containing MKID arrays is planned for early science observations in 2024. Mod-Cam will be used to test instrument modules for Prime-Cam, which can house up to seven instrument modules. We discuss the design and status of the 0.9 m diameter, 1.8 m long Mod-Cam receiver and 40 cm diameter 280 GHz instrument module, with cold stages at 40 K, 4 K, 1 K, and 100 mK. We also describe the instrument module's cryogenic readout designs to enable the readout of more than 10,000 MKIDs across 18 networks.