@inproceedings{6df8c9e52a064210813794adb8760427,
title = "The Space Coronagraph Optical Bench (SCoOB): 1. Design and Assembly of a Vacuum-compatible Coronagraph Testbed for Spaceborne High-Contrast Imaging Technology",
abstract = "The development of spaceborne coronagraphic technology is of paramount importance to the detection of habitable exoplanets in visible light. In space, coronagraphs are able to bypass the limitations imposed by the atmosphere to reach deeper contrasts and detect faint companions close to their host star. To effectively test this technology in a flight-like environment, a high-contrast imaging testbed must be designed for operation in a thermal vacuum (TVAC) chamber. A TVAC-compatible high-contrast imaging testbed is undergoing development at the University of Arizona inspired by a previous mission concept: The Coronagraphic Debris and Exoplanet Exploring Payload (CDEEP). The testbed currently operates at visible wavelengths and features a Boston Micromachines Kilo-C DM for wavefront control. Both a vector vortex coronagraph and a knife-edge Lyot coronagraph operating mode are under test. The optics will be mounted to a 1 x 2 meter pneumatically isolated optical bench designed to operate at 10−8 torr and achieve raw contrasts of 10−8 or better. The validation of our optical surface quality, alignment procedure, and first light results are presented. We also report on the status of the testbed's integration in the vaccum chamber.",
keywords = "TVAC, coronagraphy, debris disks, deformable mirrors, small satellites, space telescopes, wavefront control",
author = "Ashcraft, {Jaren N.} and Heejoo Choi and Douglas, {Ewan S.} and Kevin Derby and {Van Gorkom}, Kyle and Daewook Kim and Ramya Anche and Alex Carter and Olivier Durney and Sebastiaan Haffert and Lori Harrison and Maggie Kautz and Jennifer Lumbres and Males, {Jared R.} and Kian Milani and Montoya, {Oscar M.} and Smith, {George A.}",
note = "Funding Information: Many thanks to the many teams building and simulating existing testbed who have shared their expertise and know-how. In particular, the authors would like to thank Iva Laginja, Dimitri Mawet, Chris Mendillo, Mamadou N'Diaye, Marshall Perrin, A.J. Riggs, Garreth Ruane, and Rem{\'i} Soummer for particularly helpful conversations and tours. Thanks to the HiCAT team for sharing their design for the BMC Kilo-DM's mounting hardware,26 and a very helpful set of proceedings that guided the design phase of the testbed when it was called CDEEP.27,28 Portions of this work were supported by the Arizona Board of Regents Technology Research Initiative Fund (TRIF). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2022 SPIE.; Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2022: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave ; Conference date: 17-07-2022 Through 22-07-2022",
year = "2022",
doi = "10.1117/12.2628855",
language = "English (US)",
series = "Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering",
publisher = "SPIE",
editor = "Coyle, {Laura E.} and Shuji Matsuura and Perrin, {Marshall D.}",
booktitle = "Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2022",
}