Concept and optical design of a compact cross-grating spectrometer

The concept of a new compact echelle-inspired cross-grating spectrometer is introduced, and a specific optical design is presented. The new concept aims to achieve simultaneously a high spectral resolution, a wide accessible spectral range, and compact dimensions. The essential system novelty concerns the combination of different aspects: the implementation of a crossed grating comprising both the main dispersion and order separation, a folded reflective beam path, which enables a reduction of the system volume, and the introduction of a form-adjustable mirror for aberration compensation. The exemplary optical design offers a spectral bandwidth ranging from 330–1100 nm with spectral resolution better than 1.4 nm in the fourth and 0.4 nm in the 11th order. The optical setup covers a volume of 110  mm×110  mm×30  mm.