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X-ray diffraction gratings play an essential role in high-resolution spectroscopy of astrophysical phenomena. We present some scientific highlights from the X-ray grating spectrometers (XGS) on board of the Chandra and XMM/Newton missions, XGS optical design, and the basic physics of grating diffraction geometry and efficiency. We review design, fabrication, and performance of the currently orbiting transmission and reflection grating elements, followed by descriptions of the state-of-the art of more advanced grating technologies that promise orders-of-magnitude improvements in XGS performance, especially in combination with advanced X-ray telescope mirrors. A few key science questions that require new grating technology are posed, and powerful future mission concepts and recent and approved missions are presented., Comment: 40 pages, 12 figures. To be submitted to Springer for publication in the ISSI Scientific Reports series

Photon counting detector systems on sounding rocket payloads often require interfacing asynchronous outputs with a synchronously clocked telemetry (TM) stream. Though this can be handled with an on-board computer, there are several low cost alternatives including custom hardware, microcontrollers and field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). This paper outlines how a TM interface (TMIF) for detectors on a sounding rocket with asynchronous parallel digital output can be implemented using low cost FPGAs and minimal custom hardware. Low power consumption and high speed FPGAs are available as commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) products and can be used to develop the main component of the TMIF. Then, only a small amount of additional hardware is required for signal buffering and level translating. This paper also discusses how this system can be tested with a simulated TM chain in the small laboratory setting using FPGAs and COTS specialized data acquisition products., Comment: 16 pages, 11 pages (also published as a 2015 SPIE conference proceeding)

Thermally activated selective topography equilibration (TASTE) enables the creation of 3D structures in resist using grayscale electron-beam lithography followed by a thermal treatment to induce a selective polymer reflow. A blazed grating topography can be created by reflowing repeating staircase patterns in resist into wedge-like structures. Motivated by astronomical applications, such patterns with periodicities 840 nm and 400 nm have been fabricated in 130 nm-thick PMMA using TASTE to provide a base for X-ray reflection gratings. A path forward to integrate this alternative blazing technique into grating fabrication recipes is discussed., Comment: 21 pages, 8 figures, from a special edition of JVST B for the 62nd International Conference on Electron, Ion, and Photon Beam Technology and Nanofabrication (EIPBN)

The Off-plane Grating Rocket Experiment (OGRE) is a soft X-ray grating spectrometer to be flown on a suborbital rocket. The payload is designed to obtain the highest-resolution soft X-ray spectrum of Capella to date with a resolution goal of $R(\lambda/\Delta\lambda)>2000$ at select wavelengths in its 10--55 Angstrom bandpass of interest. The optical design of the spectrometer realizes a theoretical maximum resolution of $R\approx5000$, but this performance does not consider the finite performance of the individual spectrometer components, misalignments between components, and in-flight pointing errors. These errors all degrade the performance of the spectrometer from its theoretical maximum. A comprehensive line-spread function (LSF) error budget has been constructed for the OGRE spectrometer to identify contributions to the LSF, to determine how each of these affects the LSF, and to inform performance requirements and alignment tolerances for the spectrometer. In this document, the comprehensive LSF error budget for the OGRE spectrometer is presented, the resulting errors are validated via raytrace simulations, and the implications of these results are discussed., Comment: 26 pages, 9 figures, preprint of a manuscript accepted for publication in the Journal of Astronomical Telescopes, Instruments, and Systems (JATIS)

This paper presents Rocket Experiment (REX) that was part of a dual payload rocket campaign for NASA's sounding rocket Black Brant IX with water recovery technology. This mission was a suborbital sounding rocket flight that was launched and recovered on April 4, 2018 and targeted the Vela supernova remnant. The purpose of REX was to classify the Technology Readiness Level of onboard devices designed for space applications. The devices were two wide-field X-ray telescopes consisting of a combination of Lobster-Eye (LE) optics with an uncooled Timepix detector (256 x 256 px @ 55 um), and additional sensors. The first telescope uses a two-dimensional combination of LE modules with a focal length of 1 m and a Field of View (FOV) of 1.0 x 1.2 deg and operates in the energy range of 3 - 60 keV. The second telescope was a one-dimensional LE with a focal length of 250 mm and a FOV of 2.7 x 8.0 deg for the energy range 3 - 40 keV. The X-ray telescopes were supplemented by a camera in the visible spectrum with 1,280 x 1,024 px resolution, which was used to obtain images of the observed sources and to verify the resulting pointing of the rocket carrier. Other devices also include infrared array sensors and inertial measurement units tested for future small satellite missions. The data handler and communication system were built using the Robot Operating System, and both the system and the electronics were deployed and operated in flight. The hardware was successfully recovered after the launch and the data were extracted., Comment: Submitted to Acta Astronautica

The soft X-ray grating spectrometer on board the Off-plane Grating Rocket Experiment (OGRE) hopes to achieve the highest resolution soft X-ray spectrum of an astrophysical object when it is launched via suborbital rocket. Paramount to the success of the spectrometer are the performance of the $>250$ reflection gratings populating its reflection grating assembly. To test current grating fabrication capabilities, a grating prototype for the payload was fabricated via electron-beam lithography at The Pennsylvania State University's Materials Research Institute and was subsequently tested for performance at Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics' PANTER X-ray Test Facility. Bayesian modeling of the resulting data via Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling indicated that the grating achieved the OGRE single-grating resolution requirement of $R_{g}(\lambda/\Delta\lambda)>4500$ at the 94% confidence level. The resulting $R_g$ posterior probability distribution suggests that this confidence level is likely a conservative estimate though, since only a finite $R_g$ parameter space was sampled and the model could not constrain the upper bound of $R_g$ to less than infinity. Raytrace simulations of the system found that the observed data can be reproduced with a grating performing at $R_g=\infty$. It is therefore postulated that the behavior of the obtained $R_g$ posterior probability distribution can be explained by a finite measurement limit of the system and not a finite limit on $R_g$. Implications of these results and improvements to the test setup are discussed., Comment: 25 pages, 16 figures, preprint of an article accepted for publication in the Journal of Astronomical Instrumentation \copyright 2020 [copyright World Scientific Publishing Company] [https://www.worldscientific.com/worldscinet/jai]

Surface-relief gratings fabricated through nanoimprint lithography (NIL) are prone to topographic distortion induced by resist shrinkage. Characterizing the impact of this effect on blazed diffraction efficiency is particularly important for applications in astrophysical spectroscopy at soft x-ray wavelengths ($\lambda \approx 0.5 - 5$~nm) that call for the mass-production of large-area grating replicas with sub-micron, sawtooth surface-relief profiles. A variant of NIL that lends itself well for this task is substrate-conformal imprint lithography (SCIL), which uses a flexible, composite stamp formed from a rigid master template to imprint nanoscale features in an inorganic resist that cures thermodynamically through a silica sol-gel process. While SCIL enables the production of several hundred imprints before stamp degradation and avoids many of the detriments associated with large-area imprinting in NIL, the sol-gel resist suffers shrinkage dependent on the post-imprint cure temperature. Through atomic force microscopy and diffraction-efficiency testing at beamline 6.3.2 of the Advanced Light Source, the impact of this effect on blaze response is constrained for a $\sim$160-nm-period grating replica cured at 90$^{\circ}$C. Results demonstrate a $\sim$2$^{\circ}$ reduction in blaze angle relative to the master grating, which was fabricated by anisotropic wet etching in $\langle 311 \rangle$-oriented silicon to yield a facet angle close to 30$^{\circ}$., Comment: 17 pages, 11 figures

Gratings enable dispersive spectroscopy from the X-ray to the optical, and feature prominently in proposed flagships and SmallSats alike. The exacting performance requirements of these future missions necessitate assessing whether the present state-of-the-art in grating manufacture will limit spectrometer performance. In this work, we manufacture a 1.5 mm thick, 1000 nm period at grating using electron-beam lithography (EBL), a promising lithographic technique for patterning gratings for future astronomical observatories. We assess the limiting spectral resolution of this grating by interferometrically measuring the diffracted wavefronts produced in +/-1st order. Our measurements show this grating has a performance of at least R ~ 14,600, and that our assessment is bounded by the error of our interferometric measurement. The impact of EBL stitching error on grating performance is quantifed, and a path to measuring the period error of customized, curved gratings is presented.

Future observatories utilizing reflection grating spectrometers for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) and soft X-ray (SXR) spectroscopy require high-fidelity gratings with both blazed groove facets and custom groove layouts that are often fanned or feature a slight curvature. While fabrication procedures centering on wet anisotropic etching in monocrystalline silicon produce highly efficient blazed gratings, the precision of a nonparallel groove layout is limited by the cubic structure of the silicon crystal. This motivates the pursuit of alternative techniques to grating manufacture, namely thermally activated selective topography equilibration (TASTE), which uses gray-scale electron-beam lithography to pattern multilevel structures in resist followed by an optimized polymer thermal reflow to smooth the 3D patterns into continuous surface relief profiles. Using TASTE, a mold for a reflection grating with a periodicity of 400 nm and grooves resembling an asymmetric sawtooth was patterned in 130 nm thick poly(methyl methacrylate) resist on a silicon substrate over a 50 mm by 7.5 mm area. This structure was coated with 15 nm of gold by electron-beam physical vapor deposition using titanium as an adhesion layer and then tested for EUV and SXR diffraction efficiency at beamline 6.3.2 of the Advanced Light Source synchrotron facility. Results demonstrate a quasi-blaze response characteristic of a 27 degree blaze angle with groove facets smooth to 1.5 nm rms. Absolute peak-order efficiency ranges from 75% to 25%, while total relative efficiency measures gap90% across the measured bandpass of 15.5 nm > lambda > 1.55 nm., Comment: 19 pages, 16 figures

Future soft X-ray (10 - 50 Angstrom) spectroscopy missions require higher effective areas and resolutions to perform critical science that cannot be done by instruments on current missions. An X-ray grating spectrometer employing off-plane reflection gratings would be capable of meeting these performance criteria. Off-plane gratings with blazed groove facets operated in the Littrow mounting can be used to achieve excellent throughput into orders achieving high resolutions. We have fabricated two off-plane gratings with blazed groove profiles via a technique which uses commonly available microfabrication processes, is easily scaled for mass production, and yields gratings customized for a given mission architecture. Both fabricated gratings were tested in the Littrow mounting at the Max-Planck-Institute for extraterrestrial Physics PANTER X-ray test facility to assess their performance. The line spread functions of diffracted orders were measured, and a maximum resolution of 800 $\pm$ 20 is reported. In addition, we also observe evidence of a `blaze' effect from measurements of relative efficiencies of the diffracted orders., Comment: 25 pages including references

An X-ray spectrograph consisting of radially ruled off-plane reflection gratings and silicon pore optics was tested at the Max Planck Institute for extraterrestrial Physics PANTER X-ray test facility. The silicon pore optic (SPO) stack used is a test module for the Arcus small explorer mission, which will also feature aligned off-plane reflection gratings. This test is the first time two off-plane gratings were actively aligned to each other and with a SPO to produce an overlapped spectrum. The gratings were aligned using an active alignment module which allows for the independent manipulation of subsequent gratings to a reference grating in three degrees of freedom using picomotor actuators which are controllable external to the test chamber. We report the line spread functions of the spectrograph and the actively aligned gratings, and plans for future development., Comment: Draft Version March 19, 2015

We present a study of the plerionic supernova remnant 0540-69.3 in the LMC in X-ray, radio, optical, and infrared. We find that the shell of 0540-69.3 is characterized in the X-ray by thermal nonequilibrium plasma with depleted Mg and Si abundances and a temperature of kT ~ 0.7 keV. This thermal emission is superimposed with synchrotron emission in several regions. Based on X-ray spectra and on morphological considerations in all surveyed wavebands, we conclude that the shell is expanding into a clumpy and highly inhomogeneous medium. In one region of the shell we find an overabundance of Ne, suggesting the presence of ejecta near the edge of the remnant. We also see evidence for reheating of material via a reverse shock originating from the interaction of the supernova blast wave with a particularly dense cloud in the surrounding medium. Finally, we perform the first detailed study of the "halo" region extending 1.2-2.2 pc from the central pulsar. We detect the presence of thermal and nonthermal spectral components but do not find evidence for mixing or ejecta. We conclude that the thermal component is not a counterpart to similar optical and infrared halos and that it is most likely due to the projection of shell material along the line of sight., Comment: 35 pages, 17 figures, accepted by ApJ

Future NASA X-ray Observatories will shed light on a variety of high-energy astrophysical phenomena. Off-plane reflection gratings can be used to provide high throughput and spectral resolution in the 0.3--1.5 keV band, allowing for unprecedented diagnostics of energetic astrophysical processes. A grating spectrometer consists of multiple aligned gratings intersecting the converging beam of a Wolter-I telescope. Each grating will be aligned such that the diffracted spectra overlap at the focal plane. Misalignments will degrade both spectral resolution and effective area. In this paper we present an analytical formulation of alignment tolerances that define grating orientations in all six degrees of freedom. We verify our analytical results with raytrace simulations to fully explore the alignment parameter space. We also investigate the effect of misalignments on diffraction efficiency., Comment: 16 pages, 14 figures, Submitted to Experimental Astronomy

We present analysis of Chandra X-ray Observatory data detailing a galactic supernova remnant, G272.2-3.2. A clear shell of emission has been resolved for the first time as a series of filaments and knots around the entire rim of the remnant. Spectral analysis of these features show that they are consistent with shock heating of interstellar material in a clumpy medium. Spatially separated from this shell we see a central diffuse region dominated by harder, hotter emission. Spatial spectroscopy shows a clear enhancement of metals consistent with a Type Ia explosion, namely S, Si, and Fe. We find no clear evidence for a compact object or pulsar wind nebula and argue for a Type Ia origin. Consideration of the ionization timescales suggest an age of 8700 years for G272.2-3.2., Comment: Submitted to ApJ, 23 pages, 7 figures

We present a comprehensive study of the X-ray emission from SNR 0453-68.5 in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) as seen from the \textit{Chandra} X-ray Observatory. This object is in a class of composite remnants that exhibit a shell of emission surrounding a central plerion, more commonly known as a pulsar wind nebula (PWN). This is one of only five remnants in the LMC with an identified PWN. We find that the shell of emission is not ejecta dominated, but rather due to shocked ISM that has been swept up by the supernova blast wave or located in a precursor cavity wall. This is supported by the morphology of the local molecular cloud as seen with the \textit{Spitzer} Space Telescope. The spectral properties are consistent with a middle-aged remnant $>$17000 years old. A point source detected within the central knot is determined to be the pulsar powering the synchrotron emission of the PWN. Spectral fits show the nebula is well characterized by a power law with photon index $\Gamma=2.0$. This index is constant over a spatial scale of 0.4-1.2 pc, which is inconsistent with younger PWN containing remnants such as the Crab Nebula and SNR 0540-69.3. These fits also contain significant contributions from an ejecta dominated thermal plasma which we interpret as evidence of mixing during an evolved interaction of the PWN with the reverse shock of the SNR. We observe no evidence that the central pulsar contains a significant velocity transverse to the line of sight and argue that despite the asymmetric surface brightness distribution the SN explosion giving birth to this remnant may have been quite symmetric., Comment: Accepted by ApJ

We present a suborbital rocket payload capable of performing soft X-ray spectroscopy on extended sources. The payload can reach resolutions of ~100(lambda/dlambda) over sources as large as 3.25 degrees in diameter in the 17-107 angstrom bandpass. This permits analysis of the overall energy balance of nearby supernova remnants and the detailed nature of the diffuse soft X-ray background. The main components of the instrument are: wire grid collimators, off-plane grating arrays and gaseous electron multiplier detectors. This payload is adaptable to longer duration orbital rockets given its comparatively simple pointing and telemetry requirements and an abundance of potential science targets., Comment: Accepted to Experimental Astronomy, 12 pages plus 1 table and 17 figures

The XA region of the Cygnus Loop is a bright knot of X-ray emission on the eastern edge of the supernova remnant resulting from the interaction of the supernova blast wave with density enhancements at the edge of a precursor formed cavity. To study the nature and origin of the X-ray emission we use high spatial resolution images from Chandra. Our goal is to probe the density of various spectral extraction regions to form a picture of the cavity wall and characterize the interaction between this supernova and the local interstellar medium. We find that a series of regions along the edge of the X-ray emission appears to trace out the location of the cavity wall. The best fit plasma models result in two temperature component equilibrium models for each region. The low temperature components have densities that are an order of magnitude higher than the high temperature components. The high density plasma may exist in the cavity wall where it equilibrates rapidly and cools efficiently. The low density plasma is interior to the enhancement and heated further by a reverse shock from the wall. Calculations of shock velocities and timescales since shock heating are consistent with this interpretation. Furthermore, we find a bright knot of emission indicative of a discrete interaction of the blast wave with a high density cloud in the cavity wall with a size scale ~0.1 pc. Aside from this, other extractions made interior to the X-ray edge are confused by line of sight projection of various components. Some of these regions show evidence of detecting the cavity wall but their location makes the interpretation difficult. In general, the softer plasmas are well fit at temperatures kT~0.11 keV, with harder plasmas at temperatures of kT~0.27 keV. All regions display consistent metal depletions most notably in N, O, and Ne at an average of 0.54, 0.55, and 0.36 times solar.

The Cygnus X-ray Emission Spectroscopic Survey (CyXESS) sounding rocket payload was launched from White Sands Missile Range on 2006 November 20 and obtained a high resolution spectrum of the Cygnus Loop supernova remnant in the soft X-rays. The novel X-ray spectrograph incorporated a wire-grid collimator feeding an array of gratings in the extreme off-plane mount which ultimately dispersed the spectrum onto Gaseous Electron Multiplier (GEM) detectors. This instrument recorded 65 seconds of usable data between 43-49.5 \AA in two prominent features. The first feature near 45 \AA is dominated by the He-like triplet of \ion{O}{7} in second order with contributions from \ion{Mg}{10} and \ion{Si}{9}-\ion{Si}{12} in first order, while the second feature near 47.5 \AA is first order \ion{S}{9} and \ion{S}{10}. Fits to the spectra give an equilibrium plasma at $\log(T)=6.2$ ($kT_e=0.14$ keV) and near cosmic abundances. This is consistent with previous observations, which demonstrated that the soft x-ray emission from the Cygnus Loop is dominated by interactions between the initial blast wave with the walls of a precursor formed cavity surrounding the Cygnus Loop and that this interaction can be described using equilibrium conditions.

Lynx, one of the four strategic mission concepts under study for the 2020 Astrophysics Decadal Survey, provides leaps in capability over previous and planned x-ray missions and provides synergistic observations in the 2030s to a multitude of space- and ground-based observatories across all wavelengths. Lynx provides orders of magnitude improvement in sensitivity, on-axis subarcsecond imaging with arcsecond angular resolution over a large field of view, and high-resolution spectroscopy for point-like and extended sources in the 0.2- to 10-keV range. The Lynx architecture enables a broad range of unique and compelling science to be carried out mainly through a General Observer Program. This program is envisioned to include detecting the very first seed black holes, revealing the high-energy drivers of galaxy formation and evolution, and characterizing the mechanisms that govern stellar evolution and stellar ecosystems. The Lynx optics and science instruments are carefully designed to optimize the science capability and, when combined, form an exciting architecture that utilizes relatively mature technologies for a cost that is compatible with the projected NASA Astrophysics budget.

Lynx is a concept under study for prioritization in the 2020 Astrophysics Decadal Survey. Providing orders of magnitude increase in sensitivity over Chandra, Lynx will examine the first black holes and their galaxies, map the large-scale structure and galactic halos, and shed new light on the environments of young stars and their planetary systems. In order to meet the Lynx science goals, the telescope consists of a high-angular resolution optical assembly complemented by an instrument suite that may include a High Definition X-ray Imager, X-ray Microcalorimeter and an X-ray Grating Spectrometer. The telescope is integrated onto the spacecraft to form a comprehensive observatory concept. Progress on the formulation of the Lynx telescope and observatory configuration is reported in this paper.

NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory continues to provide an unparalleled means for exploring the high-energy universe. With its half-arcsecond angular resolution, Chandra studies have deepened our understanding of galaxy clusters, active galactic nuclei, galaxies, supernova remnants, neutron stars, black holes, and solar system objects. As we look beyond Chandra, it is clear that comparable or even better angular resolution with greatly increased photon throughput is essential to address ever more demanding science questions-such as the formation and growth of black hole seeds at very high redshifts; the emergence of the first galaxy groups; and details of feedback over a large range of scales from galaxies to galaxy clusters. Recently, we initiated a concept study for such a mission, dubbed X-ray Surveyor. The X-ray Surveyor strawman payload is comprised of a high-resolution mirror assembly and an instrument set, which may include an X-ray microcalorimeter, a high-definition imager, and a dispersive grating spectrometer and its readout. The mirror assembly will consist of highly nested, thin, grazing-incidence mirrors, for which a number of technical approaches are currently under development-including adjustable X-ray optics, differential deposition, and new polishing techniques applied to a variety of substrates. This study benefits from previous studies of large missions carried out over the past two decades and, in most areas, points to mission requirements no more stringent than those of Chandra.

Developments in grating spectroscopy are paramount for meeting the soft X‐ray science goals of future NASA X‐ray Observatories. While developments in the laboratory setting have verified the technical feasibility of using off‐plane reflection gratings to reach this goal, flight heritage is a key step in the development process toward large missions. To this end we have developed a design for a suborbital rocket payload employing an Off‐Plane X‐ray Grating Spectrometer. This spectrometer utilizes slumped glass Wolter‐1 optics, an array of gratings, and a CCD camera. We discuss the unique capabilities of this design, the expected performance, the science return, and the perceived impact to future missions.