POET (Polarimeters for Energetic Transients) is a Small Explorer mission
concept proposed to NASA in January 2008. The principal scientific goal of POET
is to measure GRB polarization between 2 and 500 keV. The payload consists of
two wide FoV instruments: a Low Energy Polarimeter (LEP) capable of
polarization measurements in the energy range from 2-15 keV and a high energy
polarimeter (Gamma-Ray Polarimeter Experiment -- GRAPE) that will measure
polarization in the 60-500 keV energy range. Spectra will be measured from 2
keV up to 1 MeV. The POET spacecraft provides a zenith-pointed platform for
maximizing the exposure to deep space. Spacecraft rotation will provide a means
of effectively dealing with systematics in the polarization response. POET will
provide sufficient sensitivity and sky coverage to measure statistically
significant polarization for up to 100 GRBs in a two-year mission. Polarization
data will also be obtained for solar flares, pulsars and other sources of
astronomical interest.
