THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - December 8, 2021 - The Nancy Grace Roman Space
Telescope is NASA's next flagship Astronomy and Astrophysics space
observatory, following the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes (HST and
JWST). Launch of Roman is planned for 2027. Whereas HST and JWST focus on
small regions of the universe with narrow field of view instruments, the
Roman Space Telescope has a wide field of view, 100 times the field of
view of Hubble. Roman's wide field of view, combined with the light
gathering power of a 2.4-meter primary mirror, will settle essential
questions in the areas of dark energy, exoplanets, and infrared
astrophysics. Roman will survey billions of galaxies and study thousands
of exoplanets.
Roman's wide field of view required a new generation of infrared detector
developed by Teledyne Imaging Sensors in Camarillo, California. The
infrared sensor chip assembly (SCA) developed for Roman is the H4RG-10,
4,096 by 4,096 pixels, each pixel is 10 by 10 microns in size. (A human
hair is about 100 microns wide.) Eighteen (18) H4RG-10 SCAs are in the
focal plane mosaic of Roman, totalling over 300 million pixels. This is by
far the largest infrared focal plane ever made, for space or ground-based
facilities.
Teledyne was awarded a $23 million contract in 2018 to supply 24 flight
quality SCAs; 18 for flight and 6 flight spares. Teledyne achieved a high
level of contract execution:
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28 flight quality SCAs have been delivered (4 more than required).
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All 28 SCAs exceed the specifications for quantum efficiency (ability to
detect photons), low noise (dark current, readout noise), and very low
image persistence (also known as image lag or memory effect).
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The ability of Teledyne's infrared detectors to also detect visible
wavelengths has enabled Roman's wide field of view instrument to
increase the spectral bandwidth by 20%.
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Teledyne continued working throughout the pandemic, ensuring the
infrared detectors were delivered before the dates needed for the Wide
Field Instrument.
In addition to the infrared arrays, Teledyne is producing the visible
light detectors that will be used in the coronograph instrument of the
Roman Space Telescope.
"Teledyne is proud to provide the high performance infrared detectors for
the Roman Space Telescope," said Dr. John Auyeung, Teledyne's Director of
Astronomy & Earth Observation and Program Manager for Roman SCA
development and flight production. "I have been fortunate to serve as the
program manager for the infrared arrays supplied to Hubble, JWST, and
Roman. The partnership with Goddard Spaceflight Center has been the
highlight of my career."
About Teledyne Technologies
Teledyne Technologies is a leading provider of sophisticated digital
imaging products and software, instrumentation, aerospace and defense
electronics, and engineered systems. Teledyne's operations are primarily
located in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Western and
Northern Europe. For more information, visit Teledyne's website at
www.teledyne.com.
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