Spectral Line Observations
Introduction
Mt Pleasant currently has a number of instruments that can be used for spectral line observing, the multibeam correlator, the TasPGA correlator and using eVLBI and DifX. All of these systems are described below. At present (September 2015) the multibeam correlator is not booting properly at present and the eVLBI system is the only working system which has been used recently.
The multibeam correlator was built by the ATNF, the TasPGA correlator is an FFT spectrometer based on the TasPGA board that is currently being developed by the UTas radio astronomy group. The TasPGA spectrometer is relatively new but it should be considered stable and ready for scientific use. The new spectrometer can process significantly more bandwidth and produces 16384 spectral channels, a factor of 4 better than the ATNF correlator. At present, it is possible to record a maximum bandwidth of 100 MHz using a dedicated baseband down-converter box. Small bandwidths (down to a minimum of 8 MHz) can also be recorded using the filters in the VC units associated with the Mk4 VLBI system. The TasPGA spectrometer has 2 IF inputs, allowing for dual-polarisation observations.
For further information the setup and operation of either system, follow the appropriate link below.
TasPGA Spectrometer Instructions
Multibeam Correlator Instructions
eVLBI spectrometer Instructions