Prototyping liquid-crystal coronagraphs for exo-Earth imaging

This paper presents initial results from the ESA-funded ``SUPPPPRESS'' project, which aims to develop high-performance liquid-crystal coronagraphs for direct imaging of Earth-like exoplanets in reflected light. The project focuses on addressing the significant challenge of polarization lea...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:arXiv.org 2024-07
Main Authors: Laginja, Iva, Doelman, David, Snik, Frans, Baudoz, Pierre, Bettonvil, Felix, Rietjens, Jeroen H, van Dijk, Chris N, Peeters, Kristien, Eigenraam, Alexander, Pougheon, Erin, van der Wielen, Tom, Esposito, Marco, Wijnen, Thomas, Krasteva, Mariya, Taccola, Matteo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Coronagraphs
Crystals
Ellipsometers
Extrasolar planets
Imaging
Leakage
Polarization
Prototyping
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:This paper presents initial results from the ESA-funded ``SUPPPPRESS'' project, which aims to develop high-performance liquid-crystal coronagraphs for direct imaging of Earth-like exoplanets in reflected light. The project focuses on addressing the significant challenge of polarization leakage in vector vortex coronagraphs (VVCs). We utilize newly manufactured multi-grating, liquid-crystal VVCs, consisting of a two- or three-element stack of vortex and grating patterns, to reduce this leakage to the \(10^{-10}\) contrast level. We detail the experimental setups, including calibration techniques with polarization microscopes and Mueller matrix ellipsometers to enhance the direct-write accuracy of the liquid-crystal patterns. The performance testing of these coronagraph masks will be conducted on the THD2 high-contrast imaging testbed in Paris.
ISSN:2331-8422