X-Ray Imaging Spectrometer (XIS) on the Suzaku Satellite

The Suzaku X-ray Observatory, launched in July 2005, is an orbiting X-ray telescope developed jointly by the Institute for Space and Astronautical at the Japan Aerospace and Exploration Agency (ISAS/JAXA) and by NASA. The X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (XIS), one of three science instruments aboard Suzaku, was developed and built by a collaboration involving the MIT Kavli Institute (then the Center for Space Research), ISAS/JAXA, and the Universities of Osaka and Kyoto. Possessing a unique combination of high effective area, good energy resolution, and low particle background, the XIS aboard Suzaku has greatly contributed to our understanding of the nature of black holes, the thermodynamic state of the Galaxy's interstellar medium, the outskirts of galaxy clusters, and other high-energy astrophysical phenomena.

The XIS consists of four independent charge-coupled devices (CCDs) which record the location and energy of incident X-rays. These CCD detectors were fabricated at MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and they are very similar to those deployed in the ACIS instrument aboard the Chandra X-ray Observatory, launched in 1999. Several improvements were made to increase the energy resolution and mitigate the effects of on-orbit radiation damage. The MKI team also provided the thermoelectric cooling system and analog electronics employed by the XIS instruments. Members of the team continue to monitor the performance of the instrument, work with the team in Japan to develop and implement calibration products, and use Suzaku to study astrophysics.

The X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (XIS) is one of three science instruments aboard Suzaku (formerly Astro-E2), an orbiting X-ray astronomy observatory. Suzaku was developed jointly by the Institute for Space and Astronautical at the Japan Aerospace and Exploration Agency (ISAS/JAXA) and by NASA. The XIS was developed and built by a collaboration between MIT, ISAS and the Universities of Osaka and Kyoto.

There are four independent XIS sensors aboard the spacecraft, each with its own X-ray telescope, and each employing an X-ray sensitive charged coupled device (CCD) that records the location and energy of incident X-ray photons. The CCDs are similar to those used in previous space mission, such as Chandra, but several improvements have been made to increase the energy resolution and mitigate the effects of on-orbit radiation damage.

The XIS CCD detectors were fabricated at MIT's Lincoln Laboratory, and the thermoelectric cooling system and analog electronics were also provided by MIT. The digital electronics, onboard processing software, and certain parts of the sensor housing were developed jointly in Japan by ISAS/JAXA, the University of Kyoto, and the University of Osaka.