First light of the Integral Field Unit of GRIS on the GREGOR solar
telescope
C. Dominguez-Tagle, M. Collados, R. Lopez, J. J. Vaz Cedillo, M. A. Esteves, O. Grassin, N. Vega, A. Mato, J. Quintero, H. Rodriguez, S. Regalado, F. Gonzalez
An Integral Field Unit (IFU) based on image-slicers has been added to the
GREGOR Infrared Spectrograph (GRIS). This upgrade to the instrument makes
possible 2D spectropolarimetry in the near-infrared by simultaneously recording
the full Stokes profiles of spectral lines (in a given spectral interval) at
all the points in the field of view. It provides high-cadence
spectropolarimetric observations at the instrument's high spatial resolution
and high polarization sensitivity at the GREGOR solar telescope. The IFU is
ideal for observing the polarized spectrum of fast-evolving solar features at
high spatial and spectral resolutions. The high observing cadence opens the
possibility of time-series observations. The analysis of observations to this
level of accuracy is essential for understanding the complex dynamics and
interactions of solar plasma and magnetic fields. The image slicer of the IFU
has eight slices of width 100 micron, covering a total field of view of 6" x
3". It was designed and built within the framework of the European projects
SOLARNET and GREST, as a prototype for future instruments of the European Solar
Telescope (EST) and was integrated into GRIS. After two commissioning campaigns
in 2017 and 2018, the IFU was finally installed at the end of September 2018
and offered to all observers who use the telescope.
Preprint
Subjects: Astrophysics - Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics; Astrophysics - Solar and Stellar Astrophysics