Abstract
A new coronagraph that performs destructive interference between copies of the telescope pupil in which "slices" have been swapped is studied in this paper. A fourth-order "pupil-swapping coronagraph" is particularly attractive for direct imaging of extrasolar terrestrial planets: it achieves 100% throughput at 1.4λ/d on a square pupil (72,5% at 1.77λ/d on a circular pupil), is compatible with a central obstruction and spiders, and delivers sharp images of off-axis sources. Direct detection of extrasolar terrestrial planets appears theoretically feasible on a 2 to 3 m visible-wavelength telescope in space.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 860-865 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific |
| Volume | 118 |
| Issue number | 844 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jun 2006 |
| Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Space and Planetary Science