Manufacturing of high precision filter arrays for the Sentinel 2 satellite

Satellite based instruments for earth observation detect the earth's surface in different spectral ranges for land use examination and identification of environmental disasters. The Sentinel 2 Satellites detect the earth's surface with a resolution of 10, 20 and 60 meters and a swath width of 290 km at 13 different bands from the visible near infrared (VNIR) to the short wave infrared (SWIR) spectral range [see 1, 4, 5]. Optical filters are necessary for the spectral wavelength selection. The single filter elements will be arranged into mechanical subassemblies made of titanium alloys and will be aligned into the optical instrument in front of the detectors [3]. During the integration of the single filter elements to filter arrays, the optical elements will be arranged into the mechanical holders with positioning accuracies of less than 10 μm. The optical apertures were realized by high precision manufacturing of the mechanical parts.