Pollux test bench: from NUV to FUV polarimetric measurements

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Main Authors: Girardot, Adrien, Neiner, Coralie, Reess, Jean-Michel, Dupuis, Olivier, Carret, Margarita
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Girardot, Adrien
Neiner, Coralie
Reess, Jean-Michel
Dupuis, Olivier
Carret, Margarita
author_facet Girardot, Adrien
Neiner, Coralie
Reess, Jean-Michel
Dupuis, Olivier
Carret, Margarita
contents Pollux is a high-resolution spectropolarimeter proposed by an European consortium for HWO. The current design of Pollux features four spectropolarimetric channels, three of which are in the UV range. For the near-UV (NUV) [236-472 nm] and mid-UV (MUV) [118-236 nm] channels, the polarimeters consist of waveplates and prisms made of MgF2, a birefringent material. However, no such birefringent material can be used for the far-UV (FUV) channel [100-123 nm]. Therefore, the polarimeter for this FUV channel is composed solely of mirrors in an innovative assembly. In this talk, we aim to detail the architecture of the test bench that will allow us to validate the performance of these different polarimeters, as part of the HWO GOMaP. Given that we are working in the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) range, the test bench operates in a vacuum chamber in a clean room. We will discuss the adaptable architecture of the bench based on wavelength and the measurement methodology that we will implement to test if the polarimeters achieve the precision of $10^{-3}$ required for the Pollux instrument. With this test bench, we will successfully increase the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of UV spectropolarimeters and, for the first time, develop a means to test FUV spectropolarimetry.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2602_10901
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Pollux test bench: from NUV to FUV polarimetric measurements
Girardot, Adrien
Neiner, Coralie
Reess, Jean-Michel
Dupuis, Olivier
Carret, Margarita
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
Pollux is a high-resolution spectropolarimeter proposed by an European consortium for HWO. The current design of Pollux features four spectropolarimetric channels, three of which are in the UV range. For the near-UV (NUV) [236-472 nm] and mid-UV (MUV) [118-236 nm] channels, the polarimeters consist of waveplates and prisms made of MgF2, a birefringent material. However, no such birefringent material can be used for the far-UV (FUV) channel [100-123 nm]. Therefore, the polarimeter for this FUV channel is composed solely of mirrors in an innovative assembly. In this talk, we aim to detail the architecture of the test bench that will allow us to validate the performance of these different polarimeters, as part of the HWO GOMaP. Given that we are working in the vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) range, the test bench operates in a vacuum chamber in a clean room. We will discuss the adaptable architecture of the bench based on wavelength and the measurement methodology that we will implement to test if the polarimeters achieve the precision of $10^{-3}$ required for the Pollux instrument. With this test bench, we will successfully increase the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of UV spectropolarimeters and, for the first time, develop a means to test FUV spectropolarimetry.
title Pollux test bench: from NUV to FUV polarimetric measurements
topic Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.10901