University of Minnesota

Department of Astronomy

IRLab Astronomy: Instruments

Instrumentation has been a defining element of the IRLab for decades. Below is a list of our current instrument set, supplied and maintained by the IRLab.

Low resolution spectrophotometry is a strong point of the IR Lab's instrument set with the ability to study objects at wavelengths from 1 to 20 µm in about an hour:

Bolometers: 1 to 20 µm at R~20.
InSb Photometers: 1 to 5 µm, less wavelength coverage than a bolometer but much more sensitive.
 

Imaging detectors provide the important dimension of space to our observations:

MINNEcam: Our 256x256, 1 to 5µm camera.
CCD Imagers: Visual sensitivity is the name of the game.
 

Spectroscopy yields the information necessary for an in-depth analysis of chemial composition and velocity information:

Spectrometers: An SBIG spectrograph for your "light" spectroscopy needs.
 

Polarimetry... it's what's for dinner:

CCD Imaging Polarimeter: Optical polarimetry with a Wollaston prism.
SMiTPol: A project for the Submillimeter Telescope on Mt. Graham.