{
  "abstract": "The Enhanced X-ray Polarimetry Observatory (EXPO) is a mission concept proposed to ESA as an M8 candidate, with a prospective launch in 2041. Building on the scientific success of IXPE, EXPO is designed to overcome its two main limitations, the narrow 2-8 keV energy band and the very slow repointing time, and to enable new scientific capabilities. A wide energy band and fast repointing are essential for investigating the hard X-ray emission of magnetars and black-hole binaries, particle acceleration in supernova remnants and pulsar-wind nebulae, radiative transfer in highly magnetized plasmas, X-ray reflection in accretion flows and active galactic nuclei, and the prompt and afterglow emission of gamma-ray bursts and magnetar flares. EXPO comprises five focusing X-ray telescopes and gas photoelectric polarimeters based on the Timepix ASIC family with InGrid amplification, enabling three-dimensional track imaging and operation in the 2-35 keV band through optimized low- and medium-energy detector configurations. The mirror modules use proven electroformed nickel technology with Au-C coatings and an XMM-like focal length of 7.5 m. The polarimeters are complemented by a coded-mask Wide Field Instrument (WFI), derived from SVOM/ECLAIRs for continuous monitoring of a 2 sr field of view; a Spectral Imaging Camera (SIC), based on stacked CMOS and CdTe detectors for broadband imaging spectroscopy and accurate spectro-polarimetric decomposition; and an Instrument Control Unit (ICU) for payload management, onboard WFI image reconstruction, transient identification, and autonomous spacecraft repointing requests. These capabilities extend X-ray polarimetry into the hard X-ray domain and open a new observational window on fast transients, time-domain astrophysics, and multi-messenger astronomy.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": "Journal reference: Proc. SPIE 14146, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2026: Ultraviolet to Gamma Ray, 141461B (17 Aug 2026)",
  "arxiv": "2608.20898",
  "author_total": 140,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Paolo Soffitta"
    },
    {
      "name": "Sebastien Guillot"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ian Hutchinson"
    },
    {
      "name": "Fabio Muleri"
    },
    {
      "name": "Mark Pearce"
    },
    {
      "name": "Andrea Santangelo"
    },
    {
      "name": "Daniele Spiga"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ivan Agudo"
    },
    {
      "name": "Gino Bruno Amata"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jaroslaw Bakala"
    },
    {
      "name": "Elisabetta Baracchini"
    },
    {
      "name": "Stefano Basso"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jorg Bayer"
    },
    {
      "name": "Benedikt Bergmann"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jaroslaw Borek"
    },
    {
      "name": "Enrico Bozzo"
    },
    {
      "name": "Soren Krinstian Brandt"
    },
    {
      "name": "Carl Budtz-Jorgensen"
    },
    {
      "name": "Vadim Burwitz"
    },
    {
      "name": "Stefano Cesare"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jerome Chenevez"
    },
    {
      "name": "Enrico Costa"
    },
    {
      "name": "Elisa Costantini"
    },
    {
      "name": "Vincenzo Cotroneo"
    },
    {
      "name": "Walter Cugno"
    },
    {
      "name": "Riccardo Ferrazzoli"
    },
    {
      "name": "Nicolas De Angelis"
    },
    {
      "name": "Desiree Della Monica Ferreira"
    },
    {
      "name": "Klaus Desch"
    },
    {
      "name": "Giorgio Dho"
    },
    {
      "name": "Giuseppe Di Persio"
    },
    {
      "name": "Sergio Fabiani"
    },
    {
      "name": "Davide Fiorina"
    },
    {
      "name": "Szymon Gburek"
    },
    {
      "name": "Markus Gruber"
    },
    {
      "name": "Allan Hornstrup"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jennifer Jones"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jochen Kaminski"
    },
    {
      "name": "Mozsi Kiss"
    },
    {
      "name": "Irfan Kuvvetli"
    },
    {
      "name": "Carlo Lefevre"
    },
    {
      "name": "Hannah Lerman"
    },
    {
      "name": "Honghui Liu"
    },
    {
      "name": "Pasqualino Loffredo"
    },
    {
      "name": "Niels Lund"
    },
    {
      "name": "Hemanth Manikantan"
    },
    {
      "name": "Melissa McHugh"
    },
    {
      "name": "Paul O'Brien"
    },
    {
      "name": "Stephane Paltani"
    },
    {
      "name": "Giovanni Pareschi"
    },
    {
      "name": "Stefano Piacentini"
    },
    {
      "name": "Vladislavs Plesanovs"
    },
    {
      "name": "John Rankin"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ajay Ratheesh"
    },
    {
      "name": "Selina Ringsborg Howalt Owe"
    },
    {
      "name": "Alda Rubini"
    },
    {
      "name": "Miguel Andres Sanchez Carrasco"
    },
    {
      "name": "Emanuele Scalise"
    },
    {
      "name": "Konrad R. Skup"
    },
    {
      "name": "Gianpiero Tagliaferri"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4h7c88v88pj91.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2608.20898",
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  "licence_source": "article",
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  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
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  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2608.20898",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-08-21",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4h7c88v88pj91.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:29:31Z",
      "native_id": "2608.20898",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.20898"
    }
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  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.HE",
      "subfield": "high-energy-astrophysics"
    },
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.IM",
      "subfield": "instrumentation-methods"
    }
  ],
  "title": "EXPO: a quantum leap in fast, wide-band X-ray polarimetry for astrophysics",
  "title_text": "EXPO: a quantum leap in fast, wide-band X-ray polarimetry for astrophysics",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:29:31Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4h7c88v88pj91",
  "venue": "arXiv",
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      "doi": "10.1117/12.3105324",
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}