Composite mirror facets for ground based gamma ray astronomy

Understand

Composite mirrors for gamma-ray astronomy have been developed to fulfill the specifications required for the next generation of Cherenkov telescopes represented by CTA (Cherenkov Telescope Array).

• In addition to the basic requirements on focus and reflection efficiency, the mirrors have to be stiff, lightweight, durable and cost efficient.
• In this paper, the technology developed to produce such mirrors is described, as well as some tests that have been performed to validate them.
• It is shown that these mirrors comply with the needs of CTA, making them good candidates for use on a significant part of the array.