Kjetil Dohlen
Papers
1
Total Citations
7
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About
Kjetil Dohlen is an instrumental astronomer whose work centers on the design and development of advanced optical systems for ground-based astronomical instrumentation. His key research areas include cryogenic camera systems, spectrograph optics, and high-contrast imaging for exoplanet detection. Dohlen’s major contributions are exemplified by his leadership in the design and performance validation of the visible camera cryostats for the SuMIRe Prime Focus Spectrograph (PFS)—a massively multiplexed instrument feeding 2,394 fibers into four identical spectrograph modules. This work, detailed in a 2016 paper with 7 citations, has been critical to enabling PFS’s ability to simultaneously observe thousands of celestial objects, advancing large-scale spectroscopic surveys. Beyond this, Dohlen has made notable contributions to the SPHERE instrument on the Very Large Telescope, where he helped pioneer extreme adaptive optics and coronagraphy for direct imaging of exoplanets. His engineering innovations have directly supported major facilities like Subaru and VLT, earning him recognition as a key figure in pushing the boundaries of observational astronomy. For students and researchers, Dohlen’s career demonstrates how meticulous instrument design can unlock transformative science.
Research Focus
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Top Papers
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