Extreme AO for extrasolar planet detection with ELTs: application to OWL

Abstract

The detection of telluric extra-solar planets implies an extremely high contrast long exposure imaging capability at near-infrared and probably visible wavelengths. We present here the core of any Planet Finder instrument which is the extreme AO sub-system. The level of AO correction directly impacts on the exposure time required for planet detection. The extreme adaptive optics system has to correct for the perturbation induced by the atmospheric turbulence as well as for the internal aberrations of the instrument itself. An example of application is proposed in the frame of the EPICS project (XAO system for the ESO OWL telescope).