ABSTRACT 9320466 Garden, Rognvald This project will build mid-infrared (828um)imaging Fabry- Perot interferometer use with a variety of infrared telescopes, including the ITRF, UKIRT, and the new Keck I & II telescopes. The instrument will facilitate diffraction- limited (<0.5 arcsec/pixel) imaging at high spectral resolution (103 /105) in a variety of important ionic and molecular spectral lines. The design is suited for studying the dynamics of extended, optically obscured regions of ionic or warm molecular gas. Such regions include, but are not restricted to,(1) HII regions associated with young OB star clusters, (2) molecular cloud shocks associated with young stellar outflows, (3) photodissociation regions, (4) the Galactic Center, and (5) galactic nuclei and extragalactic HII regions. The major components of the interferometer consist of a pair of carefully matched cryogenic Fabry-Perot interferometers and a large 128 128 mid-infrared detector array. The limiting noise-equivalent-line flux at the highest spectral resolution will be comparable to that of similar instrumentation planned for SIRTF. Furthermore, the instrument will be built in two phases. In the first phase, the design will be optimized for operation in the 813um window. The second phase will involve the design and construction of additional hardware to extend the operation into the relatively unexplored 1624um window. ***
