<title>High-Resolution Camera on AXAF</title>

Abstract

The high resolution camera (HRC) will be one of the two focal plane instruments on the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility, (AXAF). AXAF is a major NASA space observatory and is scheduled for launch in 1998. AXAF will perform high resolution spectrometry and imaging in the x-ray band of 0.1 to 10 keV. The HRC instrument consists of two detectors, the HRC-I for imaging and the HRC-S for spectroscopy. Each HRC detector consists of chevron pairs of microchannel plates (MCPs) and a crossed grid charge readout. Spatial resolutions of the HRC detectors are less than 25 micrometer (less than 0.5'). The HRC-I is a 100 by 100 mm detector primarily for imaging, the HRC-S is an approximately 30 by 300 mm detector which is optimized to function as the readout for the low energy transmission grating spectrometer (LETGS). The development of the HRC is a collaborative effort between the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, University of Leicester UK and the Osservatorio Astronomico, G.S. Vaiana, Palermo Italy. In this paper we present the most recent design, development and testing of the HRC instrument.