Science Highlights | Mazin Lab

Key discoveries and results from our instruments

Mazin Lab instruments have produced a growing body of peer-reviewed science results. The highlights below represent on-sky demonstrations of MKID capabilities as well as detector physics discoveries that open new observational modes.

Discovery of Companion to HIP 109427

On-sky diffraction-limited 950–1350 nm total intensity image and SSD map from MEC showing the companion to HIP 109427.

MEC detected a low-mass stellar companion to HIP 109427 using simultaneous total-intensity and Stochastic Speckle Discrimination (SSD) imaging. This result demonstrated that the non-Gaussian photon statistics of coherent speckle light can be exploited to improve contrast beyond what total-intensity coronagraphy alone achieves.

Instrument: MEC at Subaru/SCExAO

Steiger, S. et al. (2021). SCExAO/MEC and CHARIS Discovery of a Low-mass, 6 au Separation Companion to HIP 109427 Using Stochastic Speckle Discrimination and High-Contrast Spectroscopy. AJ, 162, 44. DOI: 10.3847/1538-3881/ac02cc

Discovery of Low-Mass Companion to HIP 5319

SCExAO/MEC detection of HIP 5319 B (upper left), multi-instrument SED (lower left), and orbital parameter posteriors with predicted orbits (right).

SCExAO and Keck direct imaging discovery of a low-mass companion around the accelerating F5 star HIP 5319, further demonstrating MEC’s capabilities for high-contrast direct imaging in z-J band.

Instrument: MEC at Subaru/SCExAO

Swimmer, N. et al. (2022). SCExAO and Keck Direct Imaging Discovery of a Low-mass Companion Around the Accelerating F5 Star HIP 5319. AJ, 164, 152. DOI: 10.3847/1538-3881/ac85a8

Photon Statistics with SCExAO/MEC

Left: SSD map of the protoplanetary disk around AB Auriga from SCExAO/MEC in total intensity. Right: SPHERE polarized-light image of the same disk showing spiral structure (Boccaletti et al. 2020).

A systematic demonstration of Stochastic Speckle Discrimination using MEC’s photon-counting capabilities. The non-Gaussian intensity statistics of coherent stellar speckle light can be used to statistically separate speckle from incoherent planet light, providing an additional contrast gain over standard coronagraphic imaging.

Instrument: MEC at Subaru/SCExAO

Steiger, S. et al. (2022). Probing Photon Statistics in Adaptive Optics Images with SCExAO/MEC. AJ, 164, 186. DOI: 10.3847/1538-3881/ac922f

Dark Count Rate Characterization of MKID Arrays

A careful characterization of the intrinsic dark count rate in MKID arrays, identifying sources of spurious photon events and their impact on high-contrast imaging performance. This work provides quantitative constraints on achievable contrast limits with MKID-based coronagraphic instruments.

Instrument: MEC at Subaru/SCExAO

Swimmer, N. et al. (2023). Characterizing the Dark Count Rate of a Large-Format MKID Array. Optics Express, 31, 10775. DOI: 10.1364/OE.485003

Membraneless Phonon Trapping Improves MKID Energy Resolution

Phonon trapping in MKID devices demonstrated without membrane isolation.

A demonstration that phonon trapping — a technique to confine phonon energy within the absorbing region of an MKID and prevent loss into the substrate — can be achieved without the fragile membrane structures previously required. Published in Physical Review Letters, this result enables fabrication of higher-energy-resolution MKID arrays without the mechanical fragility of suspended membranes.

Zobrist, N. et al. (2022). Membraneless Phonon Trapping and Resolution Enhancement in Optical Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors. PRL, 129, 017701. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.129.017701