New Amplifiers Boost Atacama Large Millimeter Array
For decades, scientists have used radio antennas to observe the cosmos and visualize distant, dark regions of the universe.This includes the gas and dust of the interstellar medium, planet-forming disks, and objects invisible to the naked eye. the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile is one of the world’s most powerful radio telescopes. ALMA uses its 66 parabolic antennas to observe millimeter and sub-millimeter radiation emitted by cold molecular clouds where new stars are born.
Each antenna is equipped with high-frequency receivers for ten wavelength ranges, from 35 to 50 gigahertz and 787 to 950 GHz, collectively known as Band 1. ALMA recently received an upgrade thanks to the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics (IAF) and the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy.The upgrade includes 145 new low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) as part of the facilities’ Band 2 coverage, ranging from 67 to 116 GHz on the electromagnetic spectrum. This expanded coverage will allow researchers to study the universe in greater detail.
Researchers especially hope to gain new insights into the “cold interstellar medium”-the dust,gas,radiation,and cosmic rays that fill the space between stars-and how stars form within it.