Speaker
Description
The La Palma Quantum Interferometer (LPQI; https://lapalmaqi.es/) aims to open the microarcsecond angular-resolution regime in optical astronomy. It achieves this by measuring correlations between individual photons detected by widely separated optical telescopes at the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory (ORM). The initial deployment, LPQI-Pathfinder, will operate between the NOT and TNG, establishing a baseline of 550 meters. A planned expansion, incorporating the GTC, WHT, and INT, will extend these interferometric baselines up to 1.55 kilometers. By combining kilometer-scale baselines with a new generation of large-format (2k x 2k) single-photon detectors and picosecond timing and synchronization, LPQI will attain angular resolutions down to approximately 50 microarcseconds. This unprecedented capability will enable transformative studies of stellar surfaces, compact-object environments, black hole accretion disks, neutron stars, nearby supernovae, and ultra-fast astrophysical transients.
