Boston Chapter of the IEEE Photonics Society

Abstract:  One of the next major milestones in exoplanet astronomy is the use of the radial velocity technique to detect Earth-like exoplanets: long-period, terrestrial worlds around solar-type stars. One crucial component for such detections is precise calibration of the spectrograph used for radial velocity measurements. We have built an astro-comb consisting of a Ti:Sapphire-based laser frequency comb, photonic crystal fiber (PCF) that shifts the Ti:Sapphire light into the visible region of the spectrum, and Fabry-Perot filter cavities that match the frequency comb tooth spacing to the resolution of the spectrograph. This astro-comb operates at the Italian National Telescope calibrating the HARPS-N spectrograph providing wavelength calibration at levels better than required to detect earths-like extra-solar planets. I will present the design and operation of this instrument and some results from using the astro-comb to characterize the HARPS-N spectrograph.

Biography:  Dr. Phillips received his B.S. with Honors from the California Institute of Technology in 1988, and his Ph.D at Harvard University in 1996. As a staff scientist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Dr. Phillips works with frequency combs and bringing precision measurement techniques from physics to astronomy. Dr. Phillips also works with  atomic clocks, developing new devices, and using existing clocks to test fundamental symmetries of nature.

Location:  MIT Lincoln Laboratory Forbes Road