ESA Open Invitation to Tender AO9827
Open Date: 02/05/2019
Closing Date: 14/06/2019 13:00:00

Status: ISSUED
Reference Nr.: 19.1ET.11
Prog. Ref.: Technology Developme
Budget Ref.: E/0901-01 – Technology Developme
Special Prov.: BE+DK+FR+DE+IT+NL+ES+SE+CH+GB+IE+AT+NO+FI+PT+GR+LU+CZ+RO+PL+EE+HU
Tender Type: C
Price Range: > 500 KEURO
Products: Satellites & Probes / Payloads / Instruments / RF and microwave Instruments / Microwave Telescopes
Techology Domains: Electromagnetic Technologies and Techniques / Antennas / Reflector and Lens Antennas / Electromagnetic Technologies and Techniques / Antennas / Millimetre-Wave and Sub-Millimetre-Wave Antenna Front-Ends
Establishment: ESTEC
Directorate: Directorate of Tech, Eng. & Quality
Department: Electrical Department
Division: RF Payloads & Technology Division
Contract Officer: Ferreol, Audrey
Industrial Policy Measure: N/A – Not apply
Last Update Date: 02/05/2019
Update Reason: Tender issue

Over past decades scientists built millimeter-wave sensitive instruments to characterise the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) fromthe ground, balloon, and satellite. For these telescopes, designs have been considered that are either based on reflecting or refracting optics. Previous instrument trade-offs have shown that refractive telescope designs can have some benefits over reflective optics designs for polarized CMB instruments, i.e. potential removal of the complex rotating half-wave plate and a more compact design as compared to off-axis Dragone telescope designs.Missions, such as LiteBird, need to make observations over large frequency bandwidths and require a large focal plane detector array to improve the sensitivity. To meet the requirements of these refractive optic designs, broadband antireflection (AR) coated (e.g. made of silicon, alumina or any other low loss material) lenses are required. Forsmall silicon lenses such ARCs have already been demonstrated and this now needs to be proven for large (300 mm) lenses covering frequencies over an octave bandwidth and operation at cryo temperatures of 4K. The design and performance of the structure supporting the various lenses needs also to be included in the activity as this is critical for the alignment and performance of the telescope. The activity shall cover the design, manufacturing and testing of the AR coated lenses to demonstrate the compliance against the requirements.