Design overview of the fiber feed for the Hobby-Eberly telescope's HRS

Devika K Divakar; Phillip MacQueen; Joseph Strubhar

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arXiv · 2509.18450

Design overview of the fiber feed for the Hobby-Eberly telescope's HRS

Devika K Divakar·Phillip MacQueen·Joseph Strubhar

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Abstract

We present the redesign of the fiber feed for the High Resolution Spectrograph (HRS) at the Hobby Eberly Telescope (HET). The upgrade incorporates a static atmospheric dispersion corrector (ADC) using Ohara i-line glasses (BAL15Y and S-FPL51Y), carefully selected for high internal transmission (> 99\%), and optimized to improve throughput and image quality across the 360 - 1000 nm band. The ADC consists of two identical Amici prisms, fixed at an orientation optimized for the HET's nominal zenith angle (35\textdegree), correcting dispersion over the HET zenith range of 26.5\textdegree to 43.5\textdegree. Relay optics were optimized to improve blue end sensitivity and maintain substantially sub-fiber-core RMS spot radii across the full field of view. Simulations, including atmospheric dispersion modeling in ZEMAX show residual dispersion $\le$ 0.42" considering the entire range of wavelengths and zenith distances, with transmission efficiency of 91 to 94\%. We also discuss how the mechanical design integrates all optical elements, including the ADC, in a rigid, modular input head assembly mounted in the HET Prime Focus Instrument Package (PFIP). This optimized fiber feed enhances coupling efficiency, improves S/N in the blue, and enables higher radial velocity precision , maintaining HET - HRS as a leading facility for high - resolution spectroscopy.

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Devika K Divakar, Phillip MacQueen, Joseph Strubhar. 2025-09-22. Design overview of the fiber feed for the Hobby-Eberly telescope's HRS. https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.18450

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