DSA-10: a prototype array for localizing fast radio bursts

TLDR

The Deep Synoptic Array 10‑dish prototype (DSA‑10) is a 10‑dish interferometer designed to detect and localize fast radio bursts with arcsecond accuracy in real time, and it will be replaced by the larger DSA‑110 over the next two years to improve sensitivity and localization. This paper describes the reactivation of DSA‑10 in March 2019 and its planned replacement by DSA‑110 to enhance sensitivity and localization. DSA‑10 comprises ten 4.5‑m dishes with 250‑MHz dual‑polarization receivers at 1.4 GHz, digitizes 20 inputs, uses FPGAs for frequency‑domain transformation and ethernet transmission, and employs servers that buffer data, perform real‑time incoherent‑sum searches, and write raw data around detected pulses to disk for coherent imaging. The system successfully detected and imaged giant pulses from the Crab Pulsar, validating its detection and imaging pipelines.

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Deep Synoptic Array 10-dish prototype (DSA-10) is an instrument designed to detect and localize fast radio bursts with arcsecond accuracy in real time. Deployed at Owens Valley Radio Observatory, it consists of ten 4.5-m diameter dishes, equipped with a 250-MHz bandwidth dual polarization receiver, centred at 1.4 GHz. The 20 input signals are digitized and field programmable gate arrays are used to transform the data to the frequency domain and transmit it over ethernet. A series of computer servers buffer both raw data samples and perform a real time search for fast radio bursts on the incoherent sum of all inputs. If a pulse is detected, the raw data surrounding the pulse are written to disc for coherent processing and imaging. The prototype system was operational from 2017 June to 2018 February conducting a drift scan search. Giant pulses from the Crab Pulsar were used to test the detection and imaging pipelines. The 10-dish prototype system was brought online again in 2019 March, and will gradually be replaced with the new DSA-110, a 110-dish system, over the next 2 yr to improve sensitivity and localization accuracy.