BICEP Array: a multi-frequency degree-scale CMB polarimeter

• Published in: Millimeter, Submillimeter, and Far-Infrared Detectors and Instrumentation for Astronomy IX
• Main Authors: Hui, Howard, Ade, P.A. R., Ahmed, Z., Aikin, R.W., Alexander, K.D., Barkats, D., Benton, S.J., Bischoff, C.A., Bock, J.J., Bowens-Rubin, R., Brevik, J.A., Buder, I., Bullock, E., Buza, V., Connors, J., Cornelison, J., Crill, B.P., Crumrine, M., Dierickx, M., Duband, L., Dvorkin, C., Filippini, J.P., Fliescher, S., Grayson, J., Hall, G., Halpern, M., Harrison, S., Hildebrandt, S.R., Hilton, G.C., Irwin, K.D., Kang, J., Karkare, K.S., Karpel, E., Kaufman, J.P., Keating, B.G., Kefeli, S., Kernasovskiy, S.A., Kovac, J.M., Kuo, C.L., LAU, K., Larsen, N.A., Leitch, E.M., Lueker, M., Megerian, K.G., Moncelsi, L., Namikawa, T., Netterfield, C.B., Nguyen, H.T., O'Brient, R., Ogburn, R.W.
• Other Authors: Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2018
• Subjects: detector: design; engineering; shielding: magnetic; optics; shielding: design; activity report; BICEP; cosmic background radiation: polarization; Instrumentation; Polarization; Cosmic Microwave Background; [PHYS.ASTR]Physics [physics]/Astrophysics [astro-ph]; [PHYS.PHYS.PHYS-INS-DET]Physics [physics]/Physics [physics]/Instrumentation and Detectors [physics.ins-det]; Austin; South Pole; South pole
• Online Access: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01851184; https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2311725

International audience Bicep Array is the newest multi-frequency instrument in the Bicep/Keck Array program. It is comprised of four 550mm aperture refractive telescopes observing the polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) at 30/40, 95, 150 and 220/270 GHz with over 30,000 detectors. We present an overview of the receiver, detailing the optics, thermal, mechanical, and magnetic shielding design. Bicep Array follows Bicep3's modular focal plane concept, and upgrades to 6" wafer to reduce fabrication with higher detector count per module. The first receiver at 30/40GHz is expected to start observing at the South Pole during the 2019-20 season. By the end of the planned Bicep Array program, we project 0.002 ⪅ σ( r ) ⪅ 0.006, assuming current modeling of polarized Galactic foreground and depending on the level of delensing that can be achieved with higher resolution maps from the South Pole Telescope.