3:00–4:00 pm
Please Join us:
Ryan McGeehan’s PhD Thesis Defense
SUPERSPEC: DEVELOPMENT AND CHARACTERIZATION OF A KINETIC INDUCTANCE DETECTOR-BASED ON-CHIP SPECTROMETER FOR MM/SUB-MM OBSERVATIONS
SuperSpec is an ultra-sensitve, moderate resolution (R~300), on-chip spectrometer for mm and sub-mm wave observations of high redshift dusty galaxies. The device employs a filter-bank architecture in which mm-wave resonant filters are coupled to Titanium Nitride kinetic inductance detectors (KIDs) along a single microwave feedline. The detector's small size and natural multiplexability compared to traditional grating spectrometers will enable future multi-object spectrographic measurements as well as high redshift line intensity mapping observations. This thesis presents the testing and characterization of these detectors, as well as preparations for on-sky deployment. Additionally, we present the progress on improvements to the SuperSpec filter bank technology utilizing thin film aluminum KIDs with a newly designed mm-wave filter bank structure.
Committee Members:
Stephan Meyer (Chair)
Kirit Karkare (Advisor)
Craig Hogan
Juan Collar