High Contrast Imaging with the New Vortex Coronagraph on NACO
2013
The installation and successful commissioning of an
L'-
bandannular groove phase mask (AGPM)
coronagraphon VLT/NACO is presented. The AGPM is a vector vortex
coronagraphmade from diamond sub-wavelength gratings tuned to the
L'-
band. The vector vortex
coronagraphenables high-contrast imaging at very small inner working angles (here 0.09 arcseconds, the diffraction limit of the VLT at L'), potentially opening up a new parameter space in high-resolution imaging. During technical and science verification runs, we discovered a late-type companion at two
beamwidthsfrom an F0V star, and imaged the inner regions of β Pictoris down to the previously unexplored projected radius of 1.75
astronomical units. The circumstellar disc of β Pic was also resolved from 1 to 5 arcseconds. These results showcase the potential of the NACO
L'-
bandAGPM over a wide range of spatial scales.
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