The Thompson scattering X-Ray polarimeter POLIX onboard XPoSAT
Affiliation: Raman Research Institute, Bangalore, India
Abstract: POLIX (Indian X-ray POLarimeter) is the primary scientific payload onboard the upcoming Indian X-ray polarimetry small satellite mission of ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) called XPoSat (X-ray Polarimetry Satellite). POLIX is a Thomson scattering X-ray polarimeter operating in the 8-30 keV spectral band designed to detect linear polarisation in astrophysical X-ray sources. POLIX uses the combination of a collimator, a Beryllium scattering block and four surrounding position-sensitive proportional counter detectors. The degree and direction of linear polarisation measurements are achieved by spinning XPoSatalong the viewing axis of POLIX and recording the azimuthal distribution of X-ray photons scattered off the Beryllium scattering block. In this talk, I will discuss the principle of operation and instrument configuration of POLIX, calibration of the position-sensitive proportional counters, and some key scientific prospects of POLIX.