Interferometry to Image Surface Spots

Abstract

I present in this lecture the technique of interferometric imaging at optical/infrared wavelengths. The technique has matured since the pioneering work of Michelson at the end of the XIXth—beginning of the XXth when he first resolved the surface of a star, Betelgeuse, with his colleague Pease. Images were obtained for the first time 20 years ago with the COAST instrument and interferometers have made constant progress to reach the minimum level where blind image reconstruction can be achieved. I briefly introduce the topic to recall why studying the surface and close environment of stars is important in some fields of stellar physics. I introduce the theory of imaging with telescopes and interferometers. I discuss the nature of interferometric data in this wavelength domain and give a few insights on the importance of getting access to visibility phases to obtain information on asymmetries of stellar surfaces. I then present the issue of aperture synthesis with a small number of telescopes, a signature of optical/infrared interferometers compared to the radio domain. Despite the impossibility to measure the phase of visibilities because of turbulence I show that useful information can be recovered from the closure phase. I eventually introduce the principles of image reconstruction and I discuss some recent results on several types of stars.