Exoplanet Detection via Differentiable Rendering

TL;DR

This paper introduces a differentiable rendering method that utilizes wavefront sensing data to enhance exoplanet detection in direct imaging, significantly improving contrast and sensitivity by modeling wave-based light propagation.

Contribution

It presents a novel differentiable rendering framework that integrates wavefront sensing data into exoplanet imaging, enabling gradient-based optimization for better starlight subtraction.

Findings

Improved contrast and detection limits demonstrated in simulations.

Effective wavefront data utilization enhances exoplanet imaging.

Potential to revitalize wavefront data for future telescopes.

Abstract

Direct imaging of exoplanets is crucial for advancing our understanding of planetary systems beyond our solar system, but it faces significant challenges due to the high contrast between host stars and their planets. Wavefront aberrations introduce speckles in the telescope science images, which are patterns of diffracted starlight that can mimic the appearance of planets, complicating the detection of faint exoplanet signals. Traditional post-processing methods, operating primarily in the image intensity domain, do not integrate wavefront sensing data. These data, measured mainly for adaptive optics corrections, have been overlooked as a potential resource for post-processing, partly due to the challenge of the evolving nature of wavefront aberrations. In this paper, we present a differentiable rendering approach that leverages these wavefront sensing data to improve exoplanet detection. Our differentiable renderer models wave-based light propagation through a coronagraphic telescope system, allowing gradient-based optimization to significantly improve starlight subtraction and increase sensitivity to faint exoplanets. Simulation experiments based on the James Webb Space Telescope configuration demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach, achieving substantial improvements in contrast and planet detection limits. Our results showcase how the computational advancements enabled by differentiable rendering can revitalize previously underexploited wavefront data, opening new avenues for enhancing exoplanet imaging and characterization.