The effect of the longitudinal polarization component in multi-axial nulling interferometry for exoplanet detection

Abstract

We show a fundamental limitation of multi-axial beam combiners in nulling interferometry. The longitudinal electric field induced by the focusing optics can drastically limit the performance of such a nulling interferometer. We further analyze the filtering capabilities of a single-mode optical fiber with respect to that longitudinal field. © 2009 ESO.