Development of the ROSIE integral field unit on the Magellan IMACS spectrograph

Abstract

We are building an image slicer integral field unit (IFU) to go on the IMACS wide-field imaging spectrograph on the Magellan Baade Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, the Reformatting Optically-Sensitive IMACS Enhancement IFU, or ROSIE IFU. The 50.4" x 53.5" field of view will be pre-sliced into four 12.6" x 53.5" sub-fields, and then each subfield will be divided into 21 0.6" x 53.5" slices. The four main image slicers will produce four pseudo-slits spaced six arcminutes apart across the IMACS f/2 camera field of view, providing a wavelength coverage of 1800 Angstroms at a spectral resolution of 2000. Optics are in-hand, the first image slicer is being aluminized, mounts are being designed and fabricated, and software is being written. This IFU will enable the efficient mapping of extended objects such as nebulae, galaxies, or outflows, making it a powerful addition to IMACS.