Gemini Planet Imager Observational Calibrations II: Detector Performance and Calibration

TL;DR

This paper details the calibration procedures and performance assessment of the HAWAII-2RG detector used in the Gemini Planet Imager, focusing on correcting various detector effects to enhance observational accuracy.

Contribution

It presents comprehensive calibration techniques for the GPI detector, improving data quality for exoplanet and circumstellar disk observations.

Findings

Effective correction of bad, hot, and cold pixels

Mitigation of persistence and non-linearity effects

Reduction of vibration-induced noise

Abstract

The Gemini Planet Imager is a newly commissioned facility instrument designed to measure the near-infrared spectra of young extrasolar planets in the solar neighborhood and obtain imaging polarimetry of circumstellar disks. GPI's science instrument is an integral field spectrograph that utilizes a HAWAII-2RG detector with a SIDECAR ASIC readout system. This paper describes the detector characterization and calibrations performed by the GPI Data Reduction Pipeline to compensate for effects including bad/hot/cold pixels, persistence, non-linearity, vibration induced microphonics and correlated read noise.