Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The successful detection of X-ray polarization from many celestial sources belonging to different classes by the IXPE mission has opened a new window in X-ray astronomy. While an impressive number of scientific topics have already been addressed by IXPE, many of them would benefit from a new class of instrumentation that could be launched on a relatively short time scale. In this contribution, we present the development activities of a focal-plane polarimeter whose goal is to extend the energy range of IXPE up to tens of keV, with better sensitivity and lower background. Our design is based on the use of multilayer mirrors and stacked instrumentation, comprising either a low- or medium-energy imaging photoelectric polarimeter and an active Compton polarimeter. Such an approach relies on hardware with flight heritage and—although still under development for the specific application in X-ray polarimetry—it has the potential to answer compelling scientific questions and to soon become competitive from the point of view of feasibility for space applications.
Source: Particles
Authors: Fabio Muleri, Stefano Cesare, Enrico Costa, Walter Cugno, Klaus Desch, Alessandro Di Marco, Sergio Fabiani, Riccardo Ferrazzoli, Markus Gruber, Daniel Heuchel, Saba Imtiaz, Jochen Kaminski, Dawoon Edwin Kim, Alessandro Lacerenza, Carlo Lefevre, Hemanth Manikantan, Vladislavs Plesanovs, John Rankin, Ajay Ratheesh, Alda Rubini, Paolo Soffitta
Language: English
Subfield: Instrumentation
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,930
OpenAlex ID: W7140189497