The adaptive optics lucky imager (AOLI): presentation, commissioning, and AIV innovations

TL;DR

AOLI combines Lucky Imaging and Adaptive Optics with a novel wavefront sensor to achieve diffraction-limited imaging at visible wavelengths from ground telescopes, even with faint reference stars.

Contribution

The paper introduces the AOLI instrument with a revolutionary TP3-WFS, demonstrating innovative solutions for AO and LI integration and successful first observations at WHT.

Findings

Achieved 20 mas resolution at visible wavelengths.

Successfully used faint reference stars with TP3-WFS.

First operational results from WHT observations.

Abstract

Here we present the Adaptive Optics Lucky Imager (AOLI), a state-of-the-art instrument which makes use of two well proved techniques, Lucky Imaging (LI) and Adaptive Optics (AO), to deliver diffraction limited imaging at visible wavelengths, 20 mas, from ground-based telescopes. Thanks to its revolutionary TP3-WFS, AOLI shall have the capability of using faint reference stars. In the extremely-big telescopes era, the combination of techniques and the development of new WFS systems seems the clue key for success. We give details of the integration and verification phases explaining the defiance that we have faced and the innovative and versatile solutions for each of its subsystems that we have developed, providing also very fresh results after its first fully-working observing run at the William Herschel Telescope (WHT).