Lightweight Soft X-ray Imager (LSXI) with glass-based coded mask

The coded mask technique is widely used in X-ray and gamma-ray astronomy, but traditional designs are often large and heavy, limiting their use on small satellites. The authors propose a novel coded mask imager built on microchannel plate (MCP) glass technology, achieving a lightweight (within 1 kg), compact, self-supporting structure ideal for space exploration missions.

The design was initially demonstrated by reconstructing encoded patterns from measurements at an X-ray beamline. Monte Carlo simulations of a module integrated into a 6U CubeSat were then conducted to assess in-orbit detector performance, including sensitivity and source localization.