TIKI: a 10-micron Earth-like planet finder for the Gemini South telescope

Célia Blain; Christian Marois; Colin Bradley; Mark Chun; René Doyon; Darren Erickson; Thomas Hayward; Masen Lamb; Olivier Lardière; Franck Marchis; Carl Melis; Michael Meyer; Chris Packham; Andrew Skemer; Simon Thibault

doi:10.1117/12.2314214

10 August 2018 TIKI: a 10-micron Earth-like planet finder for the Gemini South telescope

Célia Blain, Christian Marois, Colin Bradley, Mark Chun, René Doyon, Darren Erickson, Thomas Hayward, Masen Lamb, Olivier Lardière, Franck Marchis, Carl Melis, Michael Meyer, Chris Packham, Andrew Skemer, Simon Thibault

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 10702, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VII; 107024A (2018) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2314214
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2018, Austin, Texas, United States

Abstract

The TIKI instrument is a next generation 10-micron cryogenic extreme adaptive optics (ExAO) imager being designed for the Gemini South telescope. Its goal is to detect the thermal emission of Earth-like planets in orbit around Alpha Centauri A or B. TIKI is also a prototype for future TMT instruments capable of imaging Earth- like planets around a larger star sample, and performing low spectral resolution characterization to search for biomarkers on detected planets. The science module will operate at cryogenic temperature in order to minimize thermal background, dominant in the 10-micron wavelength range. The instrument will use Adaptive Optics, a vortex coronagraph, focal plane wavefront sensing, and advanced post-processing techniques to reach a 1E-7 contrast in less than 200 hours of observing time. It aims to be background-limited in the 2-5λ/D zone, which corresponds to the habitable zone around the two Sun-like stars of the Alpha Centauri system. In this paper, we give an overview of the project goals, present TIKI's conceptual optical design, and summarize preliminary simulation results.

Citation Download Citation

Célia Blain, Christian Marois, Colin Bradley, Mark Chun, René Doyon, Darren Erickson, Thomas Hayward, Masen Lamb, Olivier Lardière, Franck Marchis, Carl Melis, Michael Meyer, Chris Packham, Andrew Skemer, and Simon Thibault "TIKI: a 10-micron Earth-like planet finder for the Gemini South telescope", Proc. SPIE 10702, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VII, 107024A (10 August 2018); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2314214

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available