List of abstracts in 2026

I will give the conference Introduction and Historical Background, reviewing the history and recent state of the conference

I will give a concluding address for the AXRO 2026 conference

Computing the effective area for focused rays and stray light in silicon pore optics (SPO) mirror modules is a complex issue, due to the multiple possible ways in which a reflected ray can be obstructed. An analysis of this kind is always possible via ray-tracing, but it is interesting to face the same problem from an analytical viewpoint also. To this specific end, we have developed SPONGE (Silicon Pore Optics NewAthena Geometric Estimator) a software tool that, under the approximation that the Wolter-I longitudinal profiles can be approximated by double cones, enables the computation of the effective area in double and single reflection, accounting for all possible self-baffling effect in the SPO mirror assembly of NewAthena. The results can be used as terms of comparison for ray-tracing codes such as SPORT which, just like SPONGE, is part of the SIMPOSIuM software suite being developed by INAF-Brera and DTU under ESA contract. In this presentation, we show the SPONGE program and its functionalities.

In the Phase C study of the eXTP mission, we further optimized the optical design, reducing the number of mirror layers from 50 to 47, while adding 2 extra layers outside the ourmost shell. We developed the structural thermal model and the qualification model. Currently, the angular resolution of the small mirrors has reached the level of 20 arcseconds.

The Follow-up X-ray Telescope (FXT) is a key payload onboard the Einstein Probe (EP), a Chinese-led international X-ray astronomy mission launched in January 2024. After nearly three years of in-orbit operation, FXT remains in excellent health, with stable and reliable performance across all subsystems. The telescope comprises two co-aligned Wolter-I mirror modules with a focal length of 1.6 m, delivering a combined on-axis effective area of ~600 cm2 at 1.5 keV over the 0.3–10 keV band, and is equipped with back-illuminated pnCCD detectors operated at approximately −90°C. In-orbit measurements confirm an energy resolution of ~92 eV FWHM at 1.25 keV, an angular resolution of ~22″ (HPD), and a source localisation accuracy of a few arcseconds. A defining advantage is FXT's exceptionally low instrumental particle background—only ~1/5 that of eROSITA—which underpins its outstanding sensitivity to low-surface-brightness diffuse X-ray emission. Three observing modes (full-frame, partial-window, and timing) provide flexible coverage from deep imaging to high-time-resolution studies. The first FXT source catalogue has been released, comprising more than 62,000 X-ray celestial sources. In addition, FXT data are now being made publicly available through a newly added portal—the National High Energy Physics Database—in parallel with the existing archives, further improving data access for the community. Significant progress has been made in galaxy cluster observations. These encompass not only luminous clusters such as A1795 and A478, whose extended emission has been mapped well beyond the cluster cores, but also the discovery and dedicated follow-up study of X-ray-faint clusters, extending cluster X-ray studies to markedly lower surface brightness. With its large field of view, low background, and rapid response capability, FXT is well positioned to continue delivering breakthroughs in time-domain and multi-messenger astrophysics, diffuse X-ray source studies, galaxy cluster cosmology, and solar-system X-ray astronomy.