Duration: 12 months
The future of X-ray astronomy relies on both high spatial resolution imagery as well as high energy resolution spectroscopy. Today, these datasets are taken by the Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO; imagery) and XMM Newton (spectroscopy), but both telescopes were launched in 1999 and there have been significant technological advancements since 1990s. To deliver a new generation of energy resolution spectroscopy NewAthena is a selected ESA mission for the 2030s; however, currently there is no selected successor to CXO, and a major problem lies in optical manufacturing for the X-ray mirrors. The first issue is that X-ray mirrors have a tubular shape (shell) where the internal geometry is the optical surface, as such it is difficult to access. The second issue is that for a CXO successor, the manufacturing needs to reconcile two conflicting attributes: the mirrors must lightweight and have ultra-high precision optical surfaces – this is the challenge of the OSIP study.
We propose to use additive manufacturing (AM; 3D printing) to print lightweight X-ray mirror blanks in fused silica that can be polished to high precision. The AM layer-by-layer approach disrupts the status quo in two ways: significantly reducing the manufacturing time, cost and waste; and enabling lightweight structures to be introduced that can reduce mass whilst retaining stiffness. Manufacturing is streamlined as multiple mirror blanks of different diameters can be printed simultaneously and with a shape closely matching the desired geometry. Lightweight structures can be easily printed layer-by-layer: using inspiration from nature can help identify ideal structures for X-ray mirror applications, such as plant stems. In this OSIP study, we will print in fused silica segments of a shell with three different structures: a solid, a lattice, and a nature inspired design. We will evaluate the potential of printed fused silica to deliver the optical performance required by a successor to CXO.
