Presentation + Paper
13 December 2020 POLAR-2: a large scale gamma-ray polarimeter for GRBs
Author Affiliations +
Abstract
The prompt emission of GRBs has been investigated for more than 50 years but remains poorly understood. Commonly, spectral and temporal profiles of γ-ray emission are analysed. However, they are insufficient for a complete picture on GRB-related physics. The addition of polarization measurements provides invaluable information towards the understanding of these astrophysical sources. In recent years, dedicated polarimeters, such as POLAR and GAP, were built. The former of which observed low levels of polarization as well as a temporal evolution of the polarization angle. It was understood that a larger sample of GRB polarization measurements and time resolved studies are necessary to constrain theoretical models. The POLAR-2 mission aims to address this by increasing the effective area by an order of magnitude compared to POLAR. POLAR-2 is manifested for launch on board the China Space Station in 2024 and will operate for at least 2 years. Insight from POLAR will aid in the improvement of the overall POLAR-2 design. Major improvements (compared to POLAR) will include the replacement of multi-anode PMTs (MAPMTs) with SiPMs, increase in sensitive volume and further technological upgrades. POLAR-2 is projected to measure about 50 GRBs per year with equal or better quality compared to the best seen by POLAR. The instrument design, preliminary results and anticipated scientific potential of this mission will be discussed.
Conference Presentation
© (2020) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Johannes Hulsman "POLAR-2: a large scale gamma-ray polarimeter for GRBs", Proc. SPIE 11444, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2020: Ultraviolet to Gamma Ray, 114442V (13 December 2020); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2559374
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KEYWORDS
Gamma radiation

Polarimetry

Polarization

Sensors

Aerospace engineering

Photon polarization

Space operations

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