The Planar Optics Phase Sensor: a study for the VLTI 2nd Generation Fringe Tracker
Abstract
In a few years, the second generation instruments of the Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) will routinely provide observations with 4 to 6 telescopes simultaneously. To reach their ultimate performance, they will need a fringe sensor capable to measure in real time the randomly varying optical paths differences. A collaboration between LAOG (PI institute), IAGL, OCA and GIPSA-Lab has proposed the Planar Optics Phase Sensor concept to ESO for the 2nd Generation Fringe Tracker. This concept is based on the integrated optics technologies, enabling the conception of extremely compact interferometric instruments naturally providing single-mode spatial filtering. It allows operations with 4 and 6 telescopes by measuring the fringes position thanks to a spectrally dispersed ABCD method. We present here the main analysis which led to the current concept as well as the expected on-sky performance and the proposed design.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.1008.4267,
title = {The Planar Optics Phase Sensor: a study for the VLTI 2nd Generation Fringe Tracker},
author = {Nicolas Blind and Jean-Baptiste LeBouquin and Olivier Absil and Mazen Alamir and Jean-Philippe Berger and Denis Defrère and Philippe Feautrier and Franois Hénault and Laurent Jocou and Pierre Kern and Thomas Laurent and Fabien Malbet and Denis Mourard and Karine Rousselet-Perrault and Alain Sarlette and Jean Surdej and Nassima Tarmoul and Eric Tatulli and Lionel Vincent},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1008.4267},
year = {2010}
}