Improved performance of the laser guide star adaptive optics system at Lick Observatory

Scot S. Olivier; Donald T. Gavel; Herbert W. Friedman; Claire E. Max; Jong R. An; Kenneth Avicola; Brian J. Bauman; James M. Brase; Eugene Warren Campbell; Carmen J. Carrano; Jeffrey B. Cooke; Gary J. Freeze; Elinor L. Gates; Vernon Keith Kanz; Thomas C. Kuklo; Bruce A. Macintosh; Michael J. Newman; Edward L. Pierce; Kenneth E. Waltjen; James A. Watson

doi:10.1117/12.363561

27 September 1999 Improved performance of the laser guide star adaptive optics system at Lick Observatory

Scot S. Olivier, Donald T. Gavel, Herbert W. Friedman, Claire E. Max, Jong R. An, Kenneth Avicola, Brian J. Bauman, James M. Brase, Eugene Warren Campbell, Carmen J. Carrano, Jeffrey B. Cooke, Gary J. Freeze, Elinor L. Gates, Vernon Keith Kanz, Thomas C. Kuklo, Bruce A. Macintosh, Michael J. Newman, Edward L. Pierce, Kenneth E. Waltjen, James A. Watson

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 3762, Adaptive Optics Systems and Technology; (1999) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.363561
Event: SPIE's International Symposium on Optical Science, Engineering, and Instrumentation, 1999, Denver, CO, United States

Abstract

Results of experiments with the laser guide star adaptive optics system on the 3-meter Shane telescope at Lick Observatory have demonstrated a factor of 4 performance improvement over previous results. Stellar images recorded at a wavelength of 2 micrometers were corrected to over 40 percent of the theoretical diffraction-limited peak intensity. For the previous two years, this sodium-layer laser guide star system has corrected stellar images at this wavelength to approximately 10 percent of the theoretical peak intensity limit. After a campaign to improve the beam quality of the laser system, and to improve calibration accuracy and stability of the adaptive optics system using new techniques for phase retrieval and phase-shifting diffraction interferometry, the system performance has been substantially increased. The next step will be to use the Lick system for astronomical science observations, and to demonstrate this level of performance with the new system being installed on the 10-meter Keck II telescope.

Citation Download Citation

Scot S. Olivier, Donald T. Gavel, Herbert W. Friedman, Claire E. Max, Jong R. An, Kenneth Avicola, Brian J. Bauman, James M. Brase, Eugene Warren Campbell, Carmen J. Carrano, Jeffrey B. Cooke, Gary J. Freeze, Elinor L. Gates, Vernon Keith Kanz, Thomas C. Kuklo, Bruce A. Macintosh, Michael J. Newman, Edward L. Pierce, Kenneth E. Waltjen, and James A. Watson "Improved performance of the laser guide star adaptive optics system at Lick Observatory", Proc. SPIE 3762, Adaptive Optics Systems and Technology, (27 September 1999); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.363561

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