Related papers: Experimental Demonstration of a Quantum-Optimal Co…
We present a MIR coronagraph to target the direct observation of extrasolar planets for SPICA, in which a coronagraph is currently regarded as an option of the focal plane instruments. The primary target of the SPICA coronagraph is the…
We explore the capabilities of a starshade mission to directly image multi-star systems. In addition to the diffracted and scattered light for the on-axis star, a multi-star system features additional starlight leakage from the off-axis…
The Exo-Planet Imaging Camera and Spectrograph (EPICS) for the future 42-meter European-Extremely Large Telescope, will enable direct images, and spectra for both young and old Jupiter-mass planets in the infrared. To achieve the required…
Future direct imaging missions will primarily observe planets that have been previously detected, mostly via the radial velocity (RV) technique, to characterize planetary atmospheres. In the meantime, direct imaging may discover new planets…
The vortex coronagraph is an optical instrument that precisely removes on-axis starlight allowing for high contrast imaging at small angular separation from the star, thereby providing a crucial capability for direct detection and…
The Optimal Optical Coronagraph (OOC) Workshop held at the Lorentz Center in September 2017 in Leiden, the Netherlands, gathered a diverse group of 25 researchers working on exoplanet instrumentation to stimulate the emergence and sharing…
A next generation of space-based observatories aims to detect and characterize potentially Earth-like exoplanets around Sun-like stars using reflected light spectroscopy. However, it remains unclear how such direct imaging…
Coronagraphic imaging of exoplanets using ground-based instruments on large telescopes is intrinsically limited by speckles induced by uncorrected aberrations. These aberrations originate from the imperfect correction of the atmosphere by…
The Coronagraph Instrument (CGI) for NASA's Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) will constitute a dramatic step forward for high-contrast imaging, integral field spectroscopy, and polarimetry of exoplanets and circumstellar disks,…
For diffraction-limited optical systems an accurate physical optics model is necessary to properly evaluate instrument performance. Astronomical observatories outfitted with coronagraphs for direct exoplanet imaging require physical optics…
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…
We analyze the fundamental resolution of incoherent optical point sources from the perspective of a quantum detection problem: deciding whether the optical field on the image plane is generated by one source or two weaker sources with…
Solar and stellar externally occulted coronagraphs share similar concepts, but are actually very different because of geometric characteristics. Solar occulters were first developed with a simple geometric model of diffraction perpendicular…
Coronagraphy is a very efficient technique for identifying and characterizing extra-solar planets orbiting in the habitable zone of their parent star, especially when used in a space environment. An important family of coronagraphs is based…
Circumstellar environments are now routinely observed by dedicated high-contrast imagers on large, ground-based observatories. These facilities combine extreme adaptive optics and coronagraphy to achieve unprecedented sensitivities for…
Spectral differential imaging (SDI) is part of the observing strategy of current and on-going high-contrast imaging instruments on ground-based telescopes. Although it improves the star light rejection, SDI attenuates the signature of…
Coronagraph observations provide key information about the orientation of the Sun's magnetic field. Previous studies used various algorithms to segment quasi-radial features in coronagraph images and approximate their local plane-of-sky…
High-contrast imaging in the next decade aims to image exoplanets at smaller angular separations and deeper contrasts than ever before. A problem that has recently garnered attention for telescopes equipped with high-contrast coronagraphs…
We present a proof of concept for a new algorithm which can be used to detect exoplanets in high contrast images. The algorithm properly combines mutliple observations acquired during different nights, taking into account the orbital motion…
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)…