Astrophysics Instrumentation

This course introduces astrophysical instruments and the signal processing tools used to operate them.

The focus is on high angular resolution and high contrast instruments (interferometry, adaptive optics, coronography, etc.).

In addition, this course introduces the basics of digital signal processing and presents a general methodology, based on the modeling of instrumental effects, for image reconstruction and the optimal use of measurements.

This course aims to explain the operating principles of a number of instruments used in astrophysics.

This understanding is needed to assess the performance and limitations of existing instruments.

This course provides a methodological grounding in instrument design and digital signal and image processing.

Recommended prerequisites :

Sensors, Image Processing

Computer basics

Modeling and Simulation in Physics

Basic elements of optics (wave and geometry)

Final inspection

• Signal processing
  • Modeling instrumental effects
  • Statistics of random signals
  • Inverse problem approach
  • Constrained optimization
  • Maximum likelihood / maximum a posteriori estimators
  • Reconstruction problems
  • Detection problems
• Astrophysical instrumentation
  • Image formation and angular resolution
  • Telescopes
  • Optical design
  • Optical aberrations
  • Atmospheric turbulence
  • Adaptive optics
  • High-contrast imaging
  • Stellar interferometry
  • Polarimetry
  • Instrumentation for direct detection of exoplanets