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Review of Scientific Instruments / Volume 77 / Issue 7 / REVIEW ARTICLE

Rev. Sci. Instrum. 77, 071101 (2006); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.2219723 (25 pages)

MAXIMA: A balloon-borne cosmic microwave background anisotropy experiment

B. Rabii1, C. D. Winant1, J. S. Collins2, A. T. Lee3, P. L. Richards1, M. E. Abroe4, S. Hanany5, B. R. Johnson4, P. Ade6, A. Balbi7, J. J. Bock8, J. Borrill9, R. Stompor9, A. Boscaleri10, E. Pascale10, P. de Bernardis11, P. G. Ferreira12, V. V. Hristov13, A. E. Lange13, A. H. Jaffe14, C. B. Netterfield15, G. F. Smoot16, and J. H. P. Wu17

1Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720; Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720; and Center for Particle Astrophysics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
2Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720 and Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
3Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720; Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720; Center for Particle Astrophysics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720; and Physics Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720
4School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455
5School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455 and Center for Particle Astrophysics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
6Physics Department, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF24 3 YB, United Kingdom
7Universita’ di Roma Tor Vergata, 00133 Roma, Italy
8Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California 91109 and California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125
9Computational Research Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720 and Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley California 94720
10IFAC-CNR, 50127 Firenze, Italy
11Universitá di Roma La Sapienza, I-00185 Roma, Italy
12Astrophysics and Theoretical Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3RH, United Kingdom and Center for Particle Astrophysics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
13California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125
14Imperial College, London SW7 2BW, United Kingdom and Center for Particle Astrophysics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
15Physics Department, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3H8, Canada
16Physics Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720 and Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
17Department of Physics, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan and Center for Particle Astrophysics, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720

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(Received 3 March 2004; accepted 3 June 2006; published online 21 July 2006)

We describe the Millimeter wave Anisotropy eXperiment IMaging Array (MAXIMA), a balloon-borne experiment which measured the temperature anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) on angular scales of 10′ to 5°. MAXIMA mapped the CMB using 16 bolometric detectors in spectral bands centered at 150, 240, and 410 GHz, with 10′ resolution at all frequencies. The combined receiver sensitivity to CMB anisotropy was ∼ 40 μKmath. The bolometric detectors, which were cooled to 100 mK, were a prototype of the detectors which will be used on the Planck Surveyor Satellite of the European Space Agency. Systematic parasitic contributions were controlled by using four uncorrelated spatial modulations, thorough cross-linking, multiple independent CMB observations, heavily baffled optics, and strong spectral discrimination. Pointing reconstruction was accurate to 1′, and absolute calibration was better than 4%. Two MAXIMA flights with more than 8.5 h of CMB observations have mapped a total of 300 deg2 of the sky in regions of negligible known foreground emission. MAXIMA results have been released in previous publications and shown to be consistent with the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe. MAXIMA I maps, power spectra, and correlation matrices are publicly available at http://cosmology.berkeley.edu/maxima.

© 2006 American Institute of Physics

Article Outline

  1. INTRODUCTION
    1. Goals
    2. Cosmological implications
    3. Technical overview
  2. OBSERVATIONS
    1. Sky selection
  3. OPTICS
    1. Optical design
      1. The telescope
      2. Lyot stop
      3. Feedhorns
      4. Frequency bands, filters, and detector backshorts
      5. Neutral density filter
    2. Preflight characterization
      1. Spectral sensitivity
      2. Optical efficiency
      3. Focusing
      4. Far sidelobe measurements
    3. In-flight characterization of beam patterns
      1. Measurement
      2. Symmetry
      3. Beam characterization uncertainty
  4. DETECTORS
    1. MAXIMA bolometers
    2. Noise characterization
    3. Response time characterization
  5. RECEIVER AND ELECTRONICS
    1. Cryogenics
      1. math refrigerator
      2. ADR
    2. Bolometer wiring
    3. Housekeeping thermometry
    4. Internal relative calibrator
    5. RFI protection
    6. Bias and readout electronics
    7. Supporting electronics and telemetry
  6. CALIBRATION
    1. CMB dipole
      1. Dipole data analysis
      2. Sources of dipole calibration error
    2. Planets
      1. Planet calibration error sources
    3. Time dependent calibration
      1. Relative calibration error analysis
    4. Combined calibration
  7. SCANS AND POINTING
    1. Scan strategy
    2. The attitude control system
      1. CCD cameras
      2. Motors
    3. Pointing reconstruction
  8. SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION

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KEYWORDS and PACS

Keywords

radiofrequency cosmic radiation, astronomical instruments, imaging, bolometers

PACS

  • 95.55.Jz

    Radio telescopes and instrumentation; heterodyne receivers

  • 95.55.Rg

    Photoconductors and bolometers

  • 07.57.Kp

    Bolometers; infrared, submillimeter wave, microwave, and radiowave receivers and detectors

  • 98.70.Vc

    Background radiations

ARTICLE DATA

Digital Object Identifier
http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.2219723

PUBLICATION DATA

ISSN

0034-6748 (print)  
1089-7623 (online)

Publisher

$abstract.society.value is a Member of CrossRef American Institute of Physics

For access to fully linked references, you need to log in.
    A. H. Jaffe et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 3475 (2001).

    X. Wang, M. Tegmark, B. Jain, and M. Zaldarriaga, Phys. Rev. D 68, 123001 (2003).

    R. Stompor et al., Phys. Rev. D 65, 022003 (2002).

    J. H. P. Wu et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 87, 251303 (2001).

    M. G. Santos et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 88, 241302 (2002).

    M. Galeazzi and D. McCammon, J. Appl. Phys. 93, 4856 (2003)JAPIAU000093000008004856000001.

    P. L. Richards, J. Appl. Phys. 76, 1 (1994)JAPIAU000076000001000001000001.


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