Test set up description and performances for HAWAII-2RG detector characterization at ESTEC

In the frame work of the European Space Agency's Cosmic Vision program, the Euclid mission has the objective to map the geometry of the Dark Universe. Galaxies and clusters of galaxies will be observed in the visible and near-infrared wavelengths by an imaging and spectroscopic channel. For the Near Infrared Spectrometer instrument (NISP), the state-of-the-art HAWAII-2RG detectors will be used, associated with the SIDECAR ASIC readout electronic which will perform the image frame acquisitions. To characterize and validate the performance of these detectors, a test bench has been designed, tested and validated. This publication describes the pre-tests performed to build the set up dedicated to dark current measurements and tests requiring reasonably uniform light levels (such as for conversion gain measurements). Successful cryogenic and vacuum tests on commercial LEDs and photodiodes are shown. An optimized feed through in stainless steel with a V-groove to pot the flex cable connecting the SIDECAR ASIC to the room temperature board (JADE2) has been designed and tested. The test set up for quantum efficiency measurements consisting of a lamp, a monochromator, an integrating sphere and set of cold filters, and which is currently under construction will ensure a uniform illumination across the detector with variations lower than 2%. A dedicated spot projector for intra-pixel measurements has been designed and built to reach a spot diameter of 5 μm at 920nm with 2nm of bandwidth [1].

[1]  Didier Martin,et al.  ESA's CCD test bench for the Euclid visible channel , 2012, Other Conferences.

[2]  D. Martin,et al.  Characterization of HAWAII-2RG detector and SIDECAR ASIC for the Euclid mission at ESA , 2012, Other Conferences.

[3]  David H. Lumb,et al.  The Euclid Mission , 2010, Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation.

[4]  Markus Loose,et al.  Teledyne Imaging Sensors: infrared imaging technologies for astronomy and civil space , 2008, Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation.