MASTER: a triple heterodyne receiver for astronomy in the millimetre and sub-millimetre domain

• Published in: Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia
• Main Authors: BATTISTELLI, Elia Stefano, ZANNONI M, BOELLA G, GERVASI M, PASSERINI A, SIRONI G, ANDREONE D, BRUNETTI L, LACQUANITI V, MAGGI S, STENI R, NATALE V, AND THORPE J. R.
• Other Authors: Battistelli, Elia Stefano, Zannoni, M, Boella, G, Gervasi, M, Passerini, A, Sironi, G, Andreone, D, Brunetti, L, Lacquaniti, V, Maggi, S, Steni, R, Natale, V, AND THORPE, J. R.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: CSIRO Publishing:150 Oxford Street, Collingwood Victoria 3066 Australia:011 61 3 96627500, EMAIL: [e-mail], INTERNET: http://www.publish.csiro.au, Fax: [phone] 2001
• Subjects: instrumentation: detectors — ISM: lines and bands — cosmology: cosmic microwave background —submillimetre; Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11573/335943; https://doi.org/10.1071/AS01073; http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=000179495300006&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=0c7ff228ccbaaa74236f48834a34396a; http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-32444433120&partnerID=65&md5=a5d33ca95cc8fa3a42bf2eaf8ef6e2a1

A progress report of the MASTER project is presented here. MASTER is a system of three heterodyne receivers based on SIS (superconductor–insulator–superconductor) tunnel junction mixers. In our instrument these mixers will allow direct down-conversion from 94, 225, and 345 to 1.5 GHz, the IF where the signal will be detected. This instrument, coupled to a 2–4m telescope like the one proposed for the DOME C base in Antarctica and in conjunction with an Acusto Optical Spectrometer, can be used to detect emission lines associated with molecular clouds in the interstellar medium. The current status of a 94 GHz receiver, the prototype of MASTER, will be presented too. The study of the optical coupling between the receiver and MITO telescope in the Italian Alps will also be described.