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Astronomical Polarisation from the Infrared to Gamma Rays pp 67–108Cite as

X-Ray Polarimetry (Instrument/Techniques/Calibration)

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Part of the book series: Astrophysics and Space Science Library ((ASSL,volume 460))

Abstract

X-ray polarimetry is an “old” field in Astronomy which is rapidly evolving, thanks to the development of sensitive instrumentation and to mission proposals arrived at a various stages of implementation. It was recognised, since the dawn of X-ray Astronomy, as a formidable tool for the comprehension of the emission mechanisms and of the geometry at work in extreme gravitational and/or magnetic fields. We will review the subject of X-ray polarimetry spanning from 0.1 to 100 keV describing the different major principles of detection. We will show their practical implementation following the historical evolution of this subject from the past experiment to future (at the time of writing) expectations.

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Acknowledgements

The GPD project was funded by ASI, INAF and INFN during many years of development. Presently Paolo Soffitta and Enrico Costa acknowledge ASI for granting IXPE according to Accordo Attuativo n. 2017-12-H.0 with INAF.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. IAPS/INAF, Roma, Italy

    Paolo Soffitta & Enrico Costa

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  1. Paolo Soffitta
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  2. Enrico Costa
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Correspondence to Paolo Soffitta .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. INAF/IASF - Milan, Milan, Italy

    Roberto Mignani

  2. School of Physics, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland

    Andrew Shearer

  3. Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Center for Astronomy, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland

    Agnieszka Słowikowska

  4. Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London, Dorking, UK

    Silvia Zane

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Soffitta, P., Costa, E. (2019). X-Ray Polarimetry (Instrument/Techniques/Calibration). In: Mignani, R., Shearer, A., Słowikowska, A., Zane, S. (eds) Astronomical Polarisation from the Infrared to Gamma Rays. Astrophysics and Space Science Library, vol 460. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19715-5_4

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