Hexabundle optical fibre imaging devices for the Hector instrument

Abstract

Hector1, 5 is the next dark-time instrument to be commissioned on the Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT) and will include 21 IFUs called hexabundles2-4, 6 that will sit on the 2-degree top end. These hexabundles are bundles of fibres that are packed in a regular hexagonal array. They are built in sizes of 37, 61, 91, 127, and 169 fibres. The distribution of sizes of hexabundles was calculated to maximize the efficiency of the galaxy survey. The Hector hexabundles have been optimized for this instrument. Their regular hexagonal packing has been developed to improve data reduction accuracy, and the fibres have had a short length of their cladding etched in order to pack them as tightly as possible without reducing the optical quality of the devices.