NIX, the imager for ERIS: the AO instrument for the VLT

David Pearson; William Taylor; Ric Davies; Mike MacIntosh; David Henry; David Lunney; Chris Waring; Xiaofeng Gao; John Lightfoot; Adrian M. Glauser; Sascha P. Quanz; Michael R. Meyer; Hans Martin Schmid; Stephen March; Walter Bachmann; Helmut Feuchtgruber; Elizabeth George; Eckhard Sturm; Beth Biller; Sasha Hinckley; Matthew Kenworthy; Paola Amico; Andreas Glindemann; Marcus Kasper; Harald Kuntschner; Reinhold Dorn; Sebastian Egner

doi:10.1117/12.2234074

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9 August 2016 NIX, the imager for ERIS: the AO instrument for the VLT

David Pearson, William Taylor, Ric Davies, Mike MacIntosh, David Henry, David Lunney, Chris Waring, Xiaofeng Gao, John Lightfoot, Adrian M. Glauser, Sascha P. Quanz, Michael R. Meyer, Hans Martin Schmid, Stephen March, Walter Bachmann, Helmut Feuchtgruber, Elizabeth George, Eckhard Sturm, Beth Biller, Sasha Hinckley, Matthew Kenworthy, Paola Amico, Andreas Glindemann, Marcus Kasper, Harald Kuntschner, Reinhold Dorn, Sebastian Egner

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Proceedings Volume 9908, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VI; 99083F (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2234074
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2016, Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Abstract

ERIS will be the next-generation AO facility on the VLT, combining the heritage of NACO imaging, with the spectroscopic capabilities of an upgraded SINFONI. Here we report on the all-new NIX imager that will deliver diffraction-limited imaging from the J to M band. The instrument will be equipped with both Apodizing Phase Plates and Sparse Aperture Masks to provide high-angular resolution imagery, especially suited for exoplanet imaging and characterization. This paper provides detail on the instrument’s design and how it is suited to address a broad range of science cases, from detailed studies of the galactic centre at the highest resolutions, to studying detailed resolved stellar populations.

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David Pearson, William Taylor, Ric Davies, Mike MacIntosh, David Henry, David Lunney, Chris Waring, Xiaofeng Gao, John Lightfoot, Adrian M. Glauser, Sascha P. Quanz, Michael R. Meyer, Hans Martin Schmid, Stephen March, Walter Bachmann, Helmut Feuchtgruber, Elizabeth George, Eckhard Sturm, Beth Biller, Sasha Hinckley, Matthew Kenworthy, Paola Amico, Andreas Glindemann, Marcus Kasper, Harald Kuntschner, Reinhold Dorn, and Sebastian Egner "NIX, the imager for ERIS: the AO instrument for the VLT", Proc. SPIE 9908, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VI, 99083F (9 August 2016); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2234074

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