From 1.5 Meters to 10.4 Meters in 20 Years: Technological Evolution at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias in the Development of Infrared Instrumentation for Terrestrial Telescopes

Abstract

This paper reviews the evolution of the technical development of infrared instrumentation for terrestrial telescopes at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC). The three most representative instruments, CAIN (installed on the 1.5 m Carlos Sánchez Telescope), LIRIS (on the 4.2 m William Herschel Telescope), and EMIR (on the 10.4 m Gran Telescopio Canarias) are described and compared. Each project entailed an improvement and a technological advance in relation to its predecessor. Larger optical beams brought larger lenses, larger mechanisms to hold them, stiffer and more massive support structures, and a scale factor upgrade of their cryostats. The evolution of infrared projects has been closely linked to the development of the manufacturing, assembly, integration and verification facilities at the IAC and has also had a strong influence on management techniques. As an indication of the growth in complexity of projects over time, this paper highlights the framework of available human resources, established consortia, timing and costs associated with the three instruments.