The Calibration System of the iLocater Spectrograph

2026/07/29 by Sai Vidyud Senthil Nathan, Jonathan Crass, Julia E. Brady +21 · 2 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #astro-ph.IM

paper · pdf

Submitted to SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation 2026, Paper 14149-462. 9 pages, 15 figures, 3 tables

arxiv created 2026/07/29 · arxiv updated 2026/07/31

Abstract

iLocater is a new near-infrared, extreme precision radial velocity (EPRV) instrument delivered to the Large Binocular Telescope in the summer of 2026. The instrument utilizes single-mode fibers (SMFs) for light transmission, including its calibration systems. We present an overview of the iLocater calibration system, detailing the specific sources and the hardware required to inject calibration light into the SMFs. Furthermore, we discuss the hardware that efficiently switches between these sources and distributes the light to all necessary instrument locations, entirely eliminating the need for free-space propagation.

Citations

• The final design of the iLocater spectrograph: An optimized architecture for diffraction-limited EPRV instruments

Cited by

• Laboratory characterization of iLocater
• Commissioning and on-sky performance verification of iLocater

Related

• Little iLocater: paving the way for iLocater
• Commissioning and on-sky performance verification of iLocater
• Laboratory characterization of iLocater
• The final design of the iLocater spectrograph: An optimized architecture for diffraction-limited EPRV instruments
• The iLocater cryostat and thermal control system: enabling extremely precise radial velocity measurements for diffraction-limited spectrographs