Hybrid Lyot coronagraph for WFIRST-AFTA: coronagraph design and performance metrics

Abstract. The prospect of extreme high-contrast astronomical imaging from space has inspired developments of new coronagraph methods for exoplanet imaging and spectroscopy. However, the requisite imaging contrast, at levels of 1 billion to one or better for the direct imaging of cool mature exoplanets in reflected visible starlight, leads to challenging new requirements on the stability and control of the optical wavefront, at levels currently beyond the reach of ground-based telescopes. We review the design, performance, and science prospects for the hybrid Lyot coronagraph (HLC) on the WFIRST-AFTA telescope. Together with a pair of deformable mirrors for active wavefront control, the HLC creates a full 360-deg high-contrast dark field of view at 10−9 contrast levels or better, extending to within angular separations of 3 λ0/D from the central star, over spectral bandwidths of 10% or more.

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