The case for optical interferometric polarimetry

TL;DR

This paper advocates for the development of optical interferometric polarimetry (OIP), combining long-baseline optical interferometry with polarimetry to enhance astrophysical measurements of stellar and galactic phenomena.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of optical interferometric polarimetry (OIP) as a next step in instrumentation, merging spatial coherence and polarization measurements for advanced astrophysical insights.

Findings

LBOI has improved sensitivity and resolution for stellar and galactic observations.

Polarimetry has provided detailed atmospheric and envelope characterizations.

Combining LBOI with polarimetry (OIP) offers new capabilities for astrophysical research.

Abstract

Within the last 10 years, long-baseline optical interferometry (LBOI) has benefited significantly from increased sensitivity, spatial resolution, and spectral resolution, e.g., measuring the diameters and asymmetries of single stars, imaging/fitting the orbits of multiple stars, modeling Be star disks, and modeling AGN nuclei. Similarly, polarimetry has also yielded excellent astrophysical results, e.g., characterizing the atmospheres and shells of red giants/supergiants, modeling the envelopes of AGB stars, studying the morphology of Be stars, and monitoring the short- and long- term behavior of AGNs. The next logical evolutionary step in instrumentation is to combine LBOI with polarimetry, which is called optical interferometric polarimetry (OIP). In other words, measurements of spatial coherence are performed simultaneously with measurements of coherence between orthogonal polarization states.