Related papers: Mirror actively deformed and regulated for applica…
We have realized a suspended, high-reflectivity focusing metamirror ($f\approx 10$ cm, $\mathcal{R} \approx 99\%$) by non-periodic photonic crystal patterning of a Si$_3$N$_4$ membrane. The design enables construction of a stable, short…
MagAO-X is the extreme coronagraphic adaptive optics (AO) instrument for the 6.5-meter Magellan Clay telescope and is currently undergoing a comprehensive batch of upgrades. One innovation that the instrument features is a deformable mirror…
There are scientific and technological needs to improve the co-phasing of the primary mirrors of segmented telescopes. We have developed a methodology for using the wavefront sensor of an adaptive optics (AO) system to disentangle the phase…
We are developing an adaptive secondary mirror (ASM) that uses a new actuator technology created by the Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO). The TNO hybrid variable reluctance actuators have more than an order of…
The surface figure of x-ray mirrors can be improved by differential deposition of thin films. To achieve the required corrections, WSi2 layers of variable thickness were deposited through beam-defining apertures of different openings. The…
Active optics has attracted considerable interest from researchers in synchrotron radiation facilities, because of its capacity for x-ray wavefront correction. Here, we report a novel and efficient technique for correcting or modulating a…
Adaptive optics systems correct atmospheric turbulence in real time. Most adaptive optics systems used routinely correct in the near infrared, at wavelengths greater than 1 micron. MagAO- X is a new extreme adaptive optics (ExAO) instrument…
The advent of ultrahigh-power femtosecond lasers creates a need for optical components suitable to handle ultrahigh light intensities. Due to the unavoidable laser-induced ionization of matter, these components will have to be based on a…
High-contrast imaging of extrasolar planet candidates around a main-sequence star has recently been realized from the ground using current adaptive optics (AO) systems. Advancing such observations will be a task for the Gemini Planet…
If uncorrected, the Coriolis force due to the rotation of the Earth causes significant aberration of images produced by large liquid-mirror telescopes. We show that this problem can be eliminated by a fixed compensating tilt of the…
The Astro2010 Decadal Survey recommended a Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) as its top priority for a new large space mission. The report of the WFIRST-AFTA Science Definition Team (SDT) presents a Design Reference Mission for…
X-ray mirror fabrication for astronomy is challenging; this is due to the Wolter I optical geometry and the tight tolerances on roughness and form error to enable accurate and efficient X-ray reflection. The performance of an X-ray mirror,…
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory is a unique facility for survey astronomy that will soon be commissioned and begin operations. Crucial to many of its scientific goals is the achievement of sustained high image quality, limited only by the…
For future space infrared astronomical coronagraphy, we perform experimental studies on the application of aluminum mirrors to a coronagraph. Cooled reflective optics is required for broad-band mid-infrared observations in space, while…
Direct imaging of exoplanets requires very high contrast levels, which are obtained using coronagraphs. But residual quasi-static aberrations create speckles in the focal plane downstream of the coronagraph which mask the planet. This…
Interference-fit joints are typically adopted to produce permanent assemblies among mechanical parts. The resulting contact pressure is generally used for element fixing or to allow load transmission. Nevertheless, some special designs take…
We developed a scan mirror mechanism (SMM) that enable a slit-based spectrometer or spectropolarimeter to precisely and quickly map an astronomical object. The SMM, designed to be installed in the optical path preceding the entrance slit,…
Diffraction limited resolution adaptive optics (AO) correction in visible wavelengths requires a high performance control. In this paper we investigate infinite impulse response filters that optimize the wavefront correction: we tested…
We present a new kind of varifocal mirror with independently adjustable curvatures in the major directions. For actuation we use two stacked piezo bending actuators with crossed in-plane polarization. This mirror can be used for example as…
The future of space and ground based telescopes is intimately tied to technology and algorithm development surrounding wavefront sensing and control. Only with cutting edge developments and unusual ideas will we be able to build diffraction…