High contrast imaging activities at ULg + perspectives at 3.6m DOT

The University of Liège has been involved in the development and exploitation of high contrast imaging techniques for about 15 years. In this talk, I propose to review the main developments and results achieved so far by our team, in particular in the context of the Vortex project. This project aims to design, manufacture, and install vortex phase masks for stellar coronagraphy on near- to mid-infrared cameras fed by adaptive optics systems (e.g., VLT/NACO, Keck/NIRC2, etc). I will report on the main lessons learned from the commissioning and on-sky operations of these vortex coronagraphs on 10-m class telescopes. I will then shortly review the main results obtained in the field of extrasolar planets and circumstellar disks from their scientific exploitation, which has been on-going for about four years. Finally, I will discuss the perspectives for developing an AO-assisted instrument for the DOT, and possible scientific applications.