Tunable Kernel-Nulling interferometry for direct exoplanet detection

Nulling interferometry(1) is a promising technique for direct detection of exoplanets. However, the performance of current devices is limited by the sensitivity to any phase aberrations. The work presented here attempts to overcome those limitations by using a four-telescopes nulling interferometer architecture, called Kernel-Nuller,2 which includes a recombiner that positions the four signals in phase quadrature. This architecture is based on an integrated optical component containing 14 electronically controlled phase shifters, used to correct optical path differences that would be induced by manufacturing defects. The first part of the study consists in the development of an algorithm providing the delays to be injected into the component to optimize the performance of that device. The next step of this study deals with the analysis of the intensity distributions produced at the output of the Kernel-Nuller(2, 3) through a series of observations, and then apply statistical tests and data treatment techniques to detect the presence of exoplanets.