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arXiv · 2409.06510

An Instrument Error Budget for Space-Based Absolute Flux Measurements of the Sky Synchrotron Spectrum Below 20 MHz

Julie Rolla·Andrew Romero-Wolf·Joseph Lazio
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Abstract

This work describes the instrumental error budget for space-based measurements of the absolute flux of the sky synchrotron spectrum at frequencies below the ionospheric cutoff (<20 MHz). We focus on an architecture using electrically short dipoles onboard a small satellite. The error budget combines the contributions of the dipole dimensions, plasma noise, stray capacitance, and front-end amplifier input impedance. We treat the errors using both a Monte Carlo error propagation model and an analytical method. This error budget can be applied to a variety of experiments and used to ultimately improve the sensing capabilities of space-based electrically short dipole instruments. The impact of individual uncertainty components, particularly stray capacitance, is explored in more detail.

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Julie Rolla, Andrew Romero-Wolf, Joseph Lazio. 2024-09-09. An Instrument Error Budget for Space-Based Absolute Flux Measurements of the Sky Synchrotron Spectrum Below 20 MHz. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023rs007824

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