AMiBA: Array for microwave background anisotropy

As part of a 4-year Cosmology and Particle Astrophysics (CosPA) Research Excellence Initiative in Taiwan, AMiBA—a 19-element dual-channel 85–105 GHz interferometer array is being specifically built to search for high redshift clusters of galaxies via the Sunyaev-Zeldovich Effect (SZE). In addition, AMiBA will have full polarization capabilities, in order to probe the polarization properties of the Cosmic Microwave Background. AMiBA, to be sited on Mauna Kea in Hawaii or in Chile, will reach a sensitivity of ∼1 mJy or 9 μK in 1 hour. The project involves extensive international scientific and technical collaborations. The construction of AMiBA is scheduled to start operating in early 2004.