Other
Scientific paper
Jan 2010
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010aas...21544120c&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #215, #441.20; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 42, p.404
Other
Scientific paper
We present radial velocities obtained using a novel laser-based wavelength calibration technique. We have built a prototype laser calibrator for the Hectochelle spectrograph at the MMT 6.5 m telescope. The Hectochelle is a high-dispersion, fiber-fed, multi-object spectrograph capable of recording up to 240 spectra simultaneously with a resolving power of 40000. The standard wavelength calibration method makes use of spectra from thorium-argon hollow cathode lamps shining directly onto the fibers. The difference in light path between calibration and science light as well as the uneven distribution of spectral lines are believed to introduce errors of up to several hundred m/s in the wavelength scale. Our tunable laser wavelength calibrator solves these problems. The laser is bright enough for use with a dome screen, allowing the calibration light path to better match the science light path. Further, the laser is tuned in regular steps across a spectral order to generate a calibration spectrum, creating a comb of evenly-spaced lines on the detector. Using the solar spectrum reflected from the atmosphere to record the same spectrum in every fiber, we show that laser wavelength calibration brings radial velocity uncertainties down below 100 m/s. We present these results as well as an application of tunable laser calibration to stellar radial velocities determined with the infrared Ca triplet in globular clusters M15 and NGC 7492. We also suggest how the tunable laser could be useful for other instruments, including single-object, cross-dispersed echelle spectrographs, and adapted for infrared spectroscopy.
Brown Shanique
Cramer Claire
Dupree Andrea K.
Lykke Keith R.
Smith Aaron
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