MEGARA optical manufacturing process

MEGARA is the future visible integral-field and multi-object spectrograph for the GTC 10.4-m telescope located in La Palma. INAOE is a member of the MEGARA Consortium and it is in charge of the Optics Manufacturing work package. MEGARA passed the Optics Detailed Design Review in May 2013, and the blanks of the main optics have been already ordered and their manufacturing is in progress. Except for the optical fibers and microlenses, the complete MEGARA optical system will be manufactured in Mexico, shared between the workshops of INAOE and CIO. This includes a field lens, a 5-lenses collimator, a 7-lenses camera and a complete set of volume phase holographic gratings with 36 flat windows and 24 prisms, being all these elements very large and complex. Additionally, the optical tests and the complete assembly of the camera and collimator subsystems will be carried out in Mexico. Here we describe the current status of the optics manufacturing process. © 2014 SPIE.