English

Direct Imaging for the Debris Disk around $\epsilon$ Eridani with the Cool-Planet Imaging Coronagraph

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics 2026-03-31 v1 Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics Solar and Stellar Astrophysics Space Physics

Abstract

We analyze the inner debris disk around ϵ\epsilon Eridani using simulated observations with the Cool-Planet Imaging Coronagraph (CPI-C). Using the radiative transfer code MCFOST, we generate synthetic scattered-light images and spectral energy distributions for three disk models that differ in inclination and radial extent, and compare these results with the anticipated performance of CPI-C. CPI-C can resolve disk structures down to \sim3 au, offering substantially finer spatial resolution than existing HST/STIS and Spitzer/IRS observations. Recovered inclinations and radial extents closely match the input models, constraining the disk geometry and informing potential planet-disk interactions in the ϵ\epsilon Eri system. Although the cold Jupiter-like planet ϵ\epsilon Eri b is not detected in our simulations, polarimetric methods may enable detection of its reflected light. These results highlight the capability of next-generation coronagraphs to probe cold dust in nearby planetary systems.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2509.16761,
  title  = {Direct Imaging for the Debris Disk around $\epsilon$ Eridani with the Cool-Planet Imaging Coronagraph},
  author = {Chunhui Bao and Jianghui Ji and Gang Zhao and Yiming Zhu and Jiangpei Dou and Su Wang and Yao Dong},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2509.16761},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

17 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in Research in Astronomy and Astrophysics