Related papers: Speckle noise and dynamic range in coronagraphic i…
High-resolution X-ray spectroscopy has addressed not only various topics in coronal physics of stars, but has also uncovered important features relevant for our understanding of stellar evolution and the stellar environment. I summarize…
Direct exoplanet imaging via coronagraphy requires maintenance of high contrast in a dark hole for lengthy integration periods. Wavefront errors that change slowly over that time accumulate and cause systematic errors in the star's Point…
In this paper, we review the impact of small sample statistics on detection thresholds and corresponding confidence levels (CLs) in high contrast imaging at small angles. When looking close to the star, the number of resolution elements…
Stellar coronagraphs rely on deformable mirrors (DMs) to correct wavefront errors and create high contrast images. Imperfect control of the DM limits the achievable contrast and, therefore, the DM control electronics must provide fine…
NASA's Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) concept and the 2020 Decadal Survey's recommendation to develop a large space telescope to "detect and characterize Earth-like extrasolar planets" requires new starlight suppression technologies to…
In a previous paper, we discussed an original solution to improve the performances of coronagraphs by adding, in the optical scheme, an adaptive hologram removing most of the residual speckle starlight. In our simulations, the detection…
The ultimate performance of coronagraphic high contrast exoplanet imaging systems such as SPHERE or GPI is limited by quasi-static aberrations. These aberrations produce speckles that can be mistaken for planets in the image. In order to…
The speckle imaging is a photographic technique that resolves objects viewed through severely distorted media. The results are insensitive to the errors caused by apparent size of the isoplanatic patch and the telescope aberrations. In this…
Direct detection and spectroscopy of exoplanets requires high contrast imaging. For habitable exoplanets in particular, located at small angular separation from the host star, it is crucial to employ small inner working angle (IWA)…
Optical stellar interferometers have demonstrated milli-arcsecond resolution with few apertures spaced hundreds of meters apart. To obtain rich direct images, many apertures will be needed, for a better sampling of the incoming wavefront.…
In this study, we explore and review the scientific potential for exoplanet characterization by a high-contrast optical coronagraph on WFIRST/AFTA. We suggest that the heterogeneity in albedo spectra and planet/star flux ratios as a…
Observing Earth-like exoplanets orbiting within the habitable zone of Sun-like stars and studying their atmospheres in reflected starlight requires contrasts of $\sim1\mathrm{e}{-10}$ in the visible. At such high contrast, starlight…
NASA's Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) aims to achieve starlight suppression to the $10^{-10}$ level for the detection and spectral characterization of Earth-like exoplanets. Broadband ozone absorption features are key biosignatures that…
The exoplanetary science through direct imaging and spectroscopy will largely expand with the forthcoming development of new instruments at the VLT (SPHERE), Gemini (GPI), Subaru (HiCIAO), and Palomar (Project 1640) observatories. All these…
Context. Direct imaging of exoplanets takes advantage of state-of-the-art adaptive optics (AO) systems, coronagraphy, and post-processing techniques. Coronagraphs attenuate starlight to mitigate the unfavorable flux ratio between an…
Coronagraphic imaging in combination with moderate to high spectral resolution may prove more effective in both detecting extrasolar planets and characterizing them than a standard coronagraphic imaging approach. We envisage an…
A high contrast coronagraph is expected to provide one of the promising ways to directly observe extra-solar planets. We present the newest results of our laboratory experiment investigating "rigid" coronagraph with a binary shaped…
Polarization aberrations originating from the telescope and high-contrast imaging instrument optics introduce polarization-dependent speckles and associated errors in the image plane, affecting the measured exoplanet signal. Understanding…
Diluted arrays of many optical apertures will be able to provide h igh-resolution snapshot images if the beams are combined according to the densified-pupil scheme. We show that the same principle can also provide coronagraphic images, for…
Substellar companions such as exoplanets and brown dwarfs exhibit changes in brightness arising from top-of-atmosphere inhomogeneities, providing insights into their atmospheric structure and dynamics. This variability can be measured in…