Jaren was born and raised in Waikoloa Village on the Big Island of Hawaii, where he cultivated his love of sciences in the presence of the telescopes on Mauna Kea. Currently, he is enrolled in the University of Rochester’s Institute of Optics pursuing a major in Optics and hopes to pursue a graduate program in Optics or Astronomy after graduation. His primary interests include the development of optical systems for telescopes and spacecraft, and novel laser systems. STEM education and outreach is of incredible importance to him, and he wishes to one day return to Hawaii to work on STEM enrichment programs within the public school system. Presently, Jaren involves himself in his community by acting as President of the OSA: Student Chapter and spearheading educational development initiatives for the Institute of Optics. Outside of his schooling, Jaren relaxes by enjoying the outdoors, rock-climbing, and amateur astronomy.
Home Island: Big Island
Institution when accepted:University of Rochester’s Institute of Optics
Akamai Project: Characterization of Near-Field and Far-Field Illumination Patterns from Multimode Optical Fibers for Fiber-Fed Spectrographs
Project Site: TMT / UC Observatories (WFOS) – University of California, Santa Cruz
Mentors: Renate Kupke, Daren Dillon, Nicholas Macdonald
The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) is considering the implementation of fiber-fed spectrographs (i.e. WFOS, PSI) due to the advantages of stability achieved by optical fibers. Before incorporating these fiber feeds into the constructed instrument the fibers must be characterized for certain quantities that will inevitably affect the performance of the instrument. The purpose of this project is to assemble a test bench that will characterize the mode scrambling efficiency (MSE) and focal ratio degradation (FRD) of multimode optical fibers. The test bench couples broadband visible light into a fiber and then images the near-field and far-field illumination patterns onto cameras at the input and output of the fiber. The recorded near-field illumination profiles will inform users of the MSE, and determine the spatial homogeneity of the light out of the fiber face. The far-field profiles will assist users in examining FRD, which could result in throughput variations to the telescope instruments. This test bench is constructed to accommodate a variety of optical fibers so that it can be used to characterize the fibers for multiple instruments. Initial results for the square and circular core fibers being considered for the Automated Planet Finder’s spectrograph are presented to demonstrate the capabilities of the test bench.