Measuring the cophasing state of a segmented mirror with a wavelength sweep and a Zernike phase contrast sensor

Abstract

The demand for higher resolution telescopes leads to segmented primary mirrors that need to be phased for operation. A phasing sensor applying a wavelength sweep technique provides a large capture range without modulating the position of individual mirror segments. This technique offers the potential to monitor the phasing state of a segmented telescope in parallel to the science observations. We evaluate the performance of the wavelength sweep technique using a Zernike phase contrast sensor for coarse phasing. Test results on a dedicated bench show 112 nm rms precision. With the help of a simulation, we explain a known error of the method and we suggest ways for improvements.