Heimdallr and Solarstein: alignment, calibration, and correction in the Asgard suite at the VLTI

Adam K. Taras; J. Gordon Robertson; Josh Carter; Fred Crous; Benjamin Courtney-Barrer; Grace McGinness; Michael Ireland; Peter Tuthill

doi:10.1117/12.3019236

18 July 2024 Heimdallr and Solarstein: alignment, calibration, and correction in the Asgard suite at the VLTI

Adam K. Taras, J. Gordon Robertson, Josh Carter, Fred Crous, Benjamin Courtney-Barrer, Grace McGinness, Michael Ireland, Peter Tuthill

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 13096, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy X; 130967E (2024) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3019236
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2024, Yokohama, Japan

Conference Poster

Abstract

The Asgard instrument suite proposed for the ESO’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) brings with it a new generation of instruments for spectroscopy and nulling. Asgard will enable investigations such as measurement of direct stellar masses for Galactic archaeology and direct detection of giant exoplanets to probe formation models using the first nulling interferometer in the southern hemisphere. We present the design and implementation of the Astralis-built Heimdallr, the beam combiner for fringe tracking and stellar interferometry in K band, as well as Solarstein, a novel implementation of a 4-beam telescope simulator for alignment and calibration. In this update, we verify that the Heimdallr design is sufficient to perform diffraction-limited beam combination. Furthermore, we demonstrate that Solarstein presents an interface comparable to the VLTI with co-phased, equal intensity beams, enabling alignment and calibration for all Asgard instruments. In doing so, we share techniques for aligning and implementing large instruments in bulk optics.

(2024) Published by SPIE. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

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Adam K. Taras, J. Gordon Robertson, Josh Carter, Fred Crous, Benjamin Courtney-Barrer, Grace McGinness, Michael Ireland, and Peter Tuthill "Heimdallr and Solarstein: alignment, calibration, and correction in the Asgard suite at the VLTI", Proc. SPIE 13096, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy X, 130967E (18 July 2024); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3019236

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