Related papers: Performances tests on the SPHERE-IFS
With the ever-growing number of exoplanets detected, the issue of characterization is becoming more and more relevant. Direct imaging is certainly the most efficient but the most challenging tool to probe the atmosphere of exoplanets and…
The Extrasolar Planet Search with PRIMA project (ESPRI) aims at characterising and detecting extrasolar planets by measuring the host star's reflex motion using the narrow-angle astrometry capability of the PRIMA facility at the Very Large…
Cepheids are key distance indicators and benchmarks for stellar evolution, yet most of them are members of binary or multiple systems. While spectroscopic surveys and Gaia proper-motion anomalies reveal a high binary fraction, the…
The SPEAR (or 'FIMS') instrumentation has been used to conduct the first large-scale spectral mapping of diffuse cosmic far ultraviolet (FUV, 900-1750 AA) emission, including important diagnostics of interstellar hot (10^4 K - 10^6 K) and…
Searching for extrasolar planets by direct detection is extremely challenging for current instrumentation. Indirect methods, that measure the effect of a planet on its host star, are much more promising and have indeed led to the discovery…
We present a new matched filter algorithm for direct detection of point sources in the immediate vicinity of bright stars. The stellar Point Spread Function (PSF) is first subtracted using a Karhunen-Lo\'eve Image Processing (KLIP)…
ESPI has been proposed for direct imaging and spectral analysis of giant planets orbiting solar-type stars. ESPI extends the concept suggested by Nisenson and Papaliolios (2001) for a square aperture apodized telescope that has sufficient…
Spatially resolving the immediate surroundings of young stars is a key challenge for the planet formation community. SPHERE on the VLT represents an important step forward by increasing the opportunities offered by optical or near-infrared…
In search for a connection between the formation of stars and the formation of planets, a new semi-automatic spectral analysis method using \textsf{iSpec} was developed for the TIGRE telescope installed in Guanajuato, Mexico. TIGRE is a…
We summarize the red channel (2-5 micron) of the Planetary Systems Imager (PSI), a proposed second-generation instrument for the TMT. Cold exoplanets emit the majority of their light in the thermal infrared, which means these exoplanets can…
The Enhanced Resolution Imager and Spectrograph (ERIS) is the new Adaptive-Optics (AO) assisted Infrared instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT). Its refurbished Integral Field Spectrograph (IFS) SPIFFIER leverages a new AO module,…
We are studying the influence of stellar multiplicity on exoplanet systems, in particular systems that have been detected via radial-velocity searches. We are in particular interested in the closest companions as they would have a strong…
The Space Interferometry Mission (SIM) will make precise astrometric measurements that can be used to detect planets around nearby stars. We have simulated SIM observations and estimated the ability of SIM to detect planets with given…
Dusty debris disks around pre- and main-sequence stars are potential signposts for the existence of planetesimals and exoplanets. Giant planet formation is therefore expected to play a key role in the evolution of the disk. This is…
The direct imaging of rocky exoplanets is one of the major science goals for upcoming large telescopes. The contrast requirement for imaging such planets is challenging. However, the mid-IR (InfraRed) regime provides the optimum contrast to…
In the recent years, interferometric arrays of optical telescopes have reached sizes of the order of 100m, but they have yet to produce high-resolution images. The analysis of image formation now shows that such images are obtainable…
We present on-sky polarimetric observations with the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) obtained at straight Cassegrain focus on the Gemini South 8-m telescope. Observations of polarimetric calibrator stars, ranging from nearly unpolarized to…
The SHINE program is a large high-contrast near-infrared survey of 600 young, nearby stars. It is aimed at searching for and characterizing new planetary systems using VLT/SPHERE's unprecedented high-contrast and high-angular resolution…
The current direct observations of brown dwarfs and exoplanets have been obtained using instruments not specifically designed for overcoming the large contrast ratio between the host star and any wide-separation faint companions. However,…
IRIS (InfraRed Imaging Spectrograph) is a first light near-infrared diffraction limited imager and integral field spectrograph being designed for the future Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT). IRIS is optimized to perform astronomical studies…