Vibration attenuation approach for spaceborne optical interferometers

This paper proposes a vibration attenuation strategy for space borne optical interferometers to meet their submicron positional stability requirements. Specifically, the Stellar Interferometer Mission requires 10-nm level stabilization of optical elements distributed across a 10-m flexible structure in the presence of the primary disturbance source, spinning reaction wheel assemblies. The proposed strategy incorporates the high-frequency attenuation of six-axis vibration isolation with low-frequency attenuation of active optical control. The strategy is implemented on the micro-precision interferometer testbed, a fully functional hardware model of a future space borne interferometer. Combining measured testbed disturbance transfer functions with a stochastic model of reaction wheel disturbances enables evaluation of the vibration attenuation strategy in the expected on-orbit disturbance environment. Results indicate that the requirement of 10 nm is satisfied.