Optimal pupil apodizations of arbitrary apertures for high-contrast imaging

Area of Science:

• * Astronomy and Astrophysics
• * Optical Engineering

Background:

• * High-contrast imaging is crucial for direct exoplanet detection and characterization.
• * Existing pupil apodization techniques often have geometric constraints.
• * Optimizing apodizers for diverse telescope apertures is an ongoing challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To develop fully optimized two-dimensional pupil apodizations without geometric constraints.
• * To create adaptable apodizer masks for various aperture shapes, including those with obstructions.
• * To demonstrate the effectiveness of these optimized apodizers for exoplanet direct imaging.

Main Methods:

• * Employed a numerical optimization approach to design pupil plane apodizations.
• * Considered circular and segmented apertures, with and without central obstructions and spiders.
• * Applied the method to specific telescope apertures, including Subaru, SPICA, and JWST.

Main Results:

• * Generated optimized apodizers for diverse aperture shapes, including complex ones.
• * Demonstrated the design of masks for Subaru, SPICA, and JWST telescopes.
• * Observed that optimized masks tend towards a binary transmission profile.

Conclusions:

• * Fully optimized pupil apodizations can be designed for any aperture shape.
• * These apodizers are effective for high-contrast imaging in exoplanet detection.
• * The resulting binary transmission profile simplifies mask fabrication.