High-performance 3D waveguide architecture for astronomical pupil-remapping interferometry

Area of Science:

• Astronomy and Astrophysics
• Optical Instrumentation

Background:

• Direct exoplanet imaging is crucial for characterizing atmospheres and surfaces.
• Ground-based direct imaging faces challenges due to atmospheric turbulence.
• Existing methods like aperture masking have limitations in contrast and throughput.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a new generation of photonic pupil-remapping devices for high-contrast exoplanet imaging.
• To overcome limitations of previous waveguide-based interferometers, specifically unguided light interference and low throughput.
• To improve the sensitivity and accessibility of the star-to-planet contrast-separation parameter space.

Main Methods:

• Development of advanced photonic pupil-remapping devices building on the Dragonfly instrument.
• Utilizing a waveguide-based interferometer design.
• Implementing closure phase measurements and adaptive optics (AO) / extreme AO (XAO) systems.

Main Results:

• Achieved closure phase measurement scatter of approximately 0.2 degrees.
• Demonstrated waveguide throughputs exceeding 70%.
• Reached maximum contrast-ratio sensitivity of 5.3 x 10(-4) with conventional AO and 1.8 x 10(-4) with extreme-AO at 1 lambda/D.
• Achieved an order of magnitude improvement over conventional pupil-segmenting interferometry.

Conclusions:

• The new photonic pupil-remapping devices represent a significant advancement in high-contrast exoplanet imaging.
• These devices enable exploration of a previously inaccessible parameter space for exoplanet detection and characterization.
• The demonstrated performance offers a path towards more detailed studies of exoplanetary systems from ground-based telescopes.