We present the design concept of the wavelength calibration system for the Habitable-zone Planet Finder instrument (HPF), a precision radial velocity (RV) spectrograph designed to detect terrestrial-mass planets around M-dwarfs. HPF is a stabilized, fiber-fed, R~50,000 spectrograph operating in the near-infrared (NIR) z/Y/J bands from 0.84 to 1.3 microns. For HPF to achieve 1 m s^-1 or better measurement precision, a unique calibration system, stable to several times better precision, will be needed to accurately remove instrumental effects at an unprecedented level in the NIR. The primary wavelength calibration source is a laser frequency comb (LFC), currently in development at NIST Boulder, discussed separately in these proceedings. The LFC will be supplemented by a stabilized single-mode fiber Fabry-Perot interferometer reference source and Uranium-Neon lamp. The HPF calibration system will combine several other new technologies developed by the Penn State Optical-Infrared instrumentation group to improve RV measurement precision including a dynamic optical coupling system that significantly reduces modal noise effects. Each component has been thoroughly tested in the laboratory and has demonstrated significant performance gains over previous NIR calibration systems.

Date Published: 28 July 2014
PDF: 6 pages
Proc. SPIE 9147, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy V, 91477Z (28 July 2014); doi: 10.1117/12.2054967

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9147:
Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy V
Suzanne K. Ramsay; Ian S. McLean; Hideki Takami, Editor(s)