Non-axisymmetric aberration patterns from wide-field telescopes using spin-weighted Zernike Polynomials

TL;DR

This paper introduces a method using spin-weighted Zernike polynomials to describe non-axisymmetric aberration patterns in wide-field telescopes, improving the efficiency of modeling distortions caused by optical perturbations.

Contribution

It presents a novel methodology to derive spin-weighted Zernike polynomials for arbitrary order, enabling better modeling of aberrations in perturbed optical systems.

Findings

Efficient description of aberration patterns in misaligned telescopes.

Improved modeling of focal plane distortions in optical correctors.

Applicable to various optical system perturbations.

Abstract

If the optical system of a telescope is perturbed from rotational symmetry, the Zernike wavefront aberration coefficients describing that system can be expressed as a function of position in the focal plane using spin-weighted Zernike polynomials. Methodologies are presented to derive these polynomials to arbitrary order. This methodology is applied to aberration patterns produced by a misaligned Ritchey Chretian telescope and to distortion patterns at the focal plane of the DESI optical corrector, where it is shown to provide a more efficient description of distortion than conventional expansions.