{
  "abstract": "We present the optical design of VIPER: a high-resolution, multimode fiber-fed, narrowband, cross-dispersed, seeing-limited spectrograph based on a Virtually Imaged Phased Array (VIPA), a spectral disperser that provides higher dispersion and a more compact form factor than conventional diffraction gratings. VIPER is specifically designed to probe exoplanet atmospheric escape through the helium 1083 nm triplet line, with a resolving power of 300,000 over a 10 nm wavelength range. VIPER is intended for operation at the 1.5 m Tillinghast Telescope at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory (FLWO) on Mount Hopkins, Arizona, USA, and is matched to this telescope's 100 $μ$m circular-core multimode optical fiber feed at f/6. VIPER's optical design is specifically optimized for high throughput, which, in a VIPA spectrograph, is more challenging with a multimode fiber feed than a single-mode fiber feed because of the larger etendue. To address this challenge, our design implements a novel use of a cylindrical beam expander and pupil slicer. We validate our design using analytic calculations and simulations in Zemax OpticStudio non-sequential mode. Our results demonstrate the feasibility of multimode fiber-fed VIPA spectrographs as compact, high-throughput alternatives to conventional grating-based spectrographs for exoplanet science and other astronomical applications.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": "Journal reference: Proc. SPIE 14149, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy XI, 141490V (21 Aug 2026)",
  "arxiv": "2607.22454",
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Matthew C. H. Leung"
    },
    {
      "name": "David Charbonneau"
    },
    {
      "name": "Andrew Szentgyorgyi"
    },
    {
      "name": "Colby Jurgenson"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/1gxjerqyscmx9.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2607.22454",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "1gxjerqyscmx9",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.22454",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "LicenseRef-arXiv-nonexclusive-1.0",
  "licence_label": "arXiv licence",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "astro-ph.EP"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "astro-ph.IM"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "astro-ph.SR"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2607.22454",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-07-24",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/1gxjerqyscmx9.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:31Z",
      "native_id": "2607.22454",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.22454"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.IM",
      "subfield": "instrumentation-methods"
    },
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.EP",
      "subfield": "planetary"
    },
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.SR",
      "subfield": "stellar"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Optical design of VIPER: a high-resolution multimode fiber-fed VIPA spectrograph for characterizing exoplanet atmospheric escape",
  "title_text": "Optical design of VIPER: a high-resolution multimode fiber-fed VIPA spectrograph for characterizing exoplanet atmospheric escape",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:18:31Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/1gxjerqyscmx9",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": [
    {
      "doi": "10.1117/12.3102463",
      "pid": null,
      "relation": "published-as",
      "title": null,
      "venue": null
    }
  ]
}