Development of a prototype instrument for the characterisation of young giant exoplanets

Mona El Morsy (UT San Antonion)

High-dispersion coronagraphy (HDC), a technique that combines
high-contrast imaging and high-spectral spectroscopy on large
ground-based telescopes, enhances the direct characterization of giant
exoplanets. During my PhD, I worked on the development of a prototype
instrument within the framework of the HiRISE project, which utilizes
single-mode fibers (SMF) to couple SPHERE and CRIRES+ at the VLT. The
Fibre Injection Module (FIM) is a crucial component of HiRISE, as it
accurately centers the known exoplanet's PSF from SPHERE into an SMF.
I developed three laboratory strategies to meet HiRISE's centering
specifications and demonstrated an average success rate of 0.7 for 0.1
?/D accuracy and 0.95 for accuracies >0.2 ?/D. The success of HiRISE
will benefit future instruments on VLT, ELT, TMT, and post-JWST
missions, such as the Habitable Worlds Observatory.