Using an optical vortex coronagraph （OVC） is one of the most promising techniques for di- rectly imaging exoplanets because of its small inner working angle and high throughput. This paper presents the design and la...Using an optical vortex coronagraph （OVC） is one of the most promising techniques for di- rectly imaging exoplanets because of its small inner working angle and high throughput. This paper presents the design and laboratory demonstration performance of an OVC based on liquid crystal polymers （LCPs） at 633 nm and 1520 nm. The OVC can deliver good performance in laboratory tests and achieve a contrast of 10-6 at an angular distance of 3A/D, which can be implemented for imaging young giant exoplanets in combination with extreme adaptive optics.展开更多
The light reflected from planets is polarized mainly due to Rayleigh scattering, but starlight is normally unpolarized. Thus it provides an approach to enhance the imaging contrast by inducing the imaging polarimetry ...The light reflected from planets is polarized mainly due to Rayleigh scattering, but starlight is normally unpolarized. Thus it provides an approach to enhance the imaging contrast by inducing the imaging polarimetry technique. In this paper, we propose a high-contrast imaging polarimeter that is op- timized for the direct imaging of exoplanets, combined with our recently developed stepped-transmission filter based coronagraph. Here we present the design and calibration method of the polarimetry system and the associated test of its high-contrast performance. In this polarimetry system, two liquid crystal variable retarders （LCVRs） act as a polarization modulator, which can extract the polarized signal. We show that our polarimeter can achieve a measurement accuracy of about 0.2% at a visible wavelength （632.8 nm） with linearly polarized light. Finally, the whole system demonstrates that a contrast of 10 9 at 5A/D is achievable, which can be used for direct imaging of Jupiter-like planets with a space telescope.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.11661161011,11433007,11220101001,11328302 and 11373005)the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(Grant No.XDA04075200)+2 种基金the International Partnership Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences(Grant Nos.114A32KYSB20160018 and 114A32KYSB20160057)the special fund for astronomy of CAS(2015–2016)Part of the work described in this paper was carried out at California State University,Northridge,with support from the Mt.Cuba Astronomical Foundation
文摘Using an optical vortex coronagraph （OVC） is one of the most promising techniques for di- rectly imaging exoplanets because of its small inner working angle and high throughput. This paper presents the design and laboratory demonstration performance of an OVC based on liquid crystal polymers （LCPs） at 633 nm and 1520 nm. The OVC can deliver good performance in laboratory tests and achieve a contrast of 10-6 at an angular distance of 3A/D, which can be implemented for imaging young giant exoplanets in combination with extreme adaptive optics.
基金supported by the NSFC(Grant Nos.11220101001,11433007,11328302,11373005 and 11303064)the“Strategic Priority Research Program”of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(Grant Nos.XDA04070600 and XDA04075200)+2 种基金the special funding for Young Researchers of Nanjing Institute of Astronomical Optics&Technologythe special fund for astronomy(Grant No.KT2013-022)of CAS.carried out at California State University Northridge,with support from the Mt.Cuba Astronomical Foundation
文摘The light reflected from planets is polarized mainly due to Rayleigh scattering, but starlight is normally unpolarized. Thus it provides an approach to enhance the imaging contrast by inducing the imaging polarimetry technique. In this paper, we propose a high-contrast imaging polarimeter that is op- timized for the direct imaging of exoplanets, combined with our recently developed stepped-transmission filter based coronagraph. Here we present the design and calibration method of the polarimetry system and the associated test of its high-contrast performance. In this polarimetry system, two liquid crystal variable retarders （LCVRs） act as a polarization modulator, which can extract the polarized signal. We show that our polarimeter can achieve a measurement accuracy of about 0.2% at a visible wavelength （632.8 nm） with linearly polarized light. Finally, the whole system demonstrates that a contrast of 10 9 at 5A/D is achievable, which can be used for direct imaging of Jupiter-like planets with a space telescope.
