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Multiplexed surveys have the ambition to grow larger for the next generation of focal plane instruments. Future projects such as Spec-S5, MUST, and WST have an ever-growing need for multi-object spectroscopy (13,000 - 20,000 simultaneous…

The direct imaging and characterization of Earth-like planets is among the most sought-after prizes in contemporary astrophysics, however current optical instrumentation delivers insufficient dynamic range to overcome the vast contrast…

The design of a CubeSat telescope for academic research purposes must balance complicated optical and structural designs with cost to maximize performance in extreme environments. Increasing the CubeSat size (eg. 6U to 12U) will increase…

The next generation of large telescopes for direct imaging of exoplanets will require segmented primary mirrors. Over both long and short timescales, these telescopes experience segment misalignments which degrade the final science image.…

At present, the principal limitation on the resolution and contrast of astronomical imaging instruments comes from aberrations in the optical path, which may be imposed by the Earth's turbulent atmosphere or by variations in the alignment…

Electrospinning technologies for the realization of active polymeric nanomaterials can be easily up-scaled, opening perspectives to industrial exploitation, and due to their versatility they can be employed to finely tailor the size,…

Highly ambitious initiatives aspire to propel a miniature spacecraft to a neighboring star within a human generation, leveraging the radiation pressure of lasers for propulsion. One of the main challenges to achieving this enormous feat is…

The Starshot Breakthrough Initiative aims to send one-gram microchip probes to Alpha Centauri within 20 years, using gram-scale lightsails propelled by laser-based radiation pressure, reaching velocities nearing a fifth of light speed. This…

This paper discusses some of the challenges of spectro-polarimetric observations with a large aperture solar telescope such as the ATST or the EST. The observer needs to reach a compromise among spatial and spectral resolution, time…

The LAMOST-Kepler (LK-) project was initiated to use the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST) to make spectroscopic follow-up observations for the targets in the field of the Kepler mission. The Kepler field is…

Modern nanofabrication techniques have enabled us to manipulate the wavefront of light with sub-wavelength-scale structures, offering the potential to replace bulky refractive surfaces in conventional optics with ultrathin metasurfaces. In…

The fields of view of Extremely Large Telescopes will contain vast numbers of spatial sampling elements (spaxels) as their Adaptive Optics systems approach the diffraction limit over wide fields. Since this will exceed the detection…

The advent of extremely large telescopes will bring unprecedented light-collecting power and spatial resolution, but it will also lead to a significant increase in the size and complexity of focal-plane instruments. The use of freeform…

We present two novel designs for a telescope suitable for massively-multiplexed spectroscopy. The first is a very wide field Cassegrain telescope optimised for fibre feeding. It provides a Field Of View (FOV) of 2.5 degrees diameter with a…

Recent advances in astronomical observations have ushered in an era of remarkable discoveries. We now probe the Universe through multi-messenger signals, image the sky with unprecedented depth and resolution, and investigate individual…

The Large Array Survey Telescope (LAST) is a wide-field telescope designed to explore the variable and transient sky with a high cadence and to be a test-bed for cost-effective telescope design. A LAST node is composed of 48 (32 already…

We describe and summarize the optical challenges for future instrumentation for Extremely Large Telescopes (ELTs). Knowing the complex instrumental requirements is crucial for the successful design of 30-60m aperture telescopes. After all,…

Coronagraph instruments on future space telescopes will enable the direct detection and characterization of Earth-like exoplanets around Sun-like stars for the first time. The quest for the optimal optical coronagraph designs has made rapid…

Metasurfaces provide a compact, flexible, and reliable solution for controlling the wavefront of light. In imaging systems, micro-lens arrays are integrated with pixel matrices to reduce optical crosstalk, enhance photon collection…

Submillimeter cameras now have up to $10^4$ pixels (SCUBA 2). The proposed CCAT 25-meter submillimeter telescope will feature a 1 degree field-of-view. Populating the focal plane at 350 microns would require more than $10^6$ photon-noise…