Michael P. Fitzgerald
Professor, UCLA
3-949 PAB
Physics and Astronomy Building
430 Portola Plaza, Box 951547
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1547
USA

mpfitz@ucla.edu


Research Interests

I am interested in extrasolar planets and their formation. In order to study these objects and processes, I am seeking to advance astronomical instrumentation and observational technique. Particularly interesting are indirect and direct techniques for detecting extrasolar planets with adaptive optics, coronagraphy, and interferometry. I am also studying dust disks around main sequence stars. High-contrast observations of circumstellar debris can reveal signatures of planet formation.

Curriculum Vitae

Classes

Research Links

Planetary Systems Imager
Infrared Laboratory
Astronomy Division
Department of Physics and Astronomy
UCLA

Selected Publications [Curated full list at ADS; Automated at RID and ORCID] :
Finnerty, L., Xuan, J.W., Xin, Y., Liberman, J., Schofield, T., Fitzgerald, M.P., et al. "Atmospheric Metallicity and C/O of HD 189733 b from High-resolution Spectroscopy" Astronomical Journal, 167 (2024): 43 [ADS; PDF]
Lin, J., Fitzgerald, M.P., Xin, Y., Kim, Y.J., Guyon, O., Norris, B., Betters, C., Leon-Saval, S., Ahn, K., Deo, V., Lozi, J, Vievard, S., Levinstein, D., Sallum S., and Jovanovic, N. "Real-time Experimental Demonstrations of a Photonic Lantern Wave-front Sensor" Astrophysical Journal Letters, 959 (2023): L34 [ADS; PDF]
Lin, J., Fitzgerald, M.P., Xin, Y., Kim, Y.J., Guyon, O., Leon-Saval, S., Norris, B., Jovanovic, N. "Focal-plane wavefront sensing with photonic lanterns II: Characterization and Optimization" Journal of the Optical Society of America B, 40 (2023): 3196 [ADS; PDF]
Finnerty, L. et al. "Keck Planet Imager and Characterizer Emission Spectroscopy of WASP-33b" Astronomical Journal, 166 (2023): 31 [ADS; PDF]
Lewis, B., Fitzgerald, M.P., Dodkins, R.H., Davis, K.K., Lin, J. "Speckle Space-Time Covariance in High-Contrast Imaging." Astronomical Journal, 164 (2022): 63 [ADS; PDF]
Lin, J., Fitzgerald, M.P., Xin, Y., Guyon, O., Leon-Saval, S., Norris, B., Jovanovic, N. "Focal-plane wavefront sensing with photonic lanterns I: theoretical framework" Journal of the Optical Society of America B, 39 (2022): 2643 [ADS; PDF]
Gibbs, A., Fitzgerald, M.P. "Limits on the Auroral Generation of H3+ in Brown Dwarf and Extrasolar Giant Planet Atmospheres with Keck/NIRSPEC." Astronomical Journal, 164 (2022): 63 [ADS; PDF]
Horstman, K., Fitzgerald, M.P., Lyke, J.E., Yeh, S.C.C., Chu, D.S. "Using Non-Negative Matrix Factorization to Improve Calibration of the Keck OSIRIS Integral Field Spectrograph." Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 134 (2022): 064504 [ADS; PDF]
Lin, J., Jovanovic, N, Fitzgerald, M.P. "Design considerations of photonic lanterns for diffraction-limited spectrometry." Journal of the Optical Society of America B, 38 (2021): A51 [ADS; PDF]
Arriaga, P., Fitzgerald, M.P., Duchêne, G., Kalas, P., et al. "Multiband Polarimetric Imaging of HR 4796A with the Gemini Planet Imager." Astronomical Journal, 160 (2020): 79 [ADS; PDF]
Esposito, T. M., Fitzgerald, M. P., Graham, J. R., Kalas, P. et al. "Bringing `The Moth' to Light: A Planet-Sculpting Scenario for the HD 61005 Debris Disk." Astronomical Journal, 152 (2016): 85 [ADS; PDF]
Hung, L.-W., Duchêne, G., Arriaga, P., Fitzgerald, M. P., et al. "First Scattered-light Image of the Debris Disk around HD 131835 with the Gemini Planet Imager" Astrophysical Journal, 815 (2015): L14 [ADS; PDF]
Hung, L.-W., Fitzgerald, M. P., Chen, C. H., Mittal, T., Kalas, P. G., & Graham, J. R. "Discovery of Resolved Debris Disk Around HD 131835." Astrophysical Journal, 802 (2015): 138 [ADS; PDF]
Esposito, T. M., Fitzgerald, M. P., Graham, J. R., & Kalas, P. "Modeling Self-subtraction in Angular Differential Imaging: Application to the HD 32297 Debris Disk." Astrophysical Journal, 780 (2014): 25 [ADS; PDF]
Kalas, P., Graham, J. R., Fitzgerald, M. P., & Clampin, M. "STIS Coronagraphic Imaging of Fomalhaut: Main Belt Structure and the Orbit of Fomalhaut b." Astrophysical Journal, 775 (2013): 56 [ADS; PDF]
Fitzgerald, M. P., Kalas, P., & Graham, J. R. "Orbital Constraints on the beta Pic Inner Planet Candidate with Keck Adaptive Optics." Astrophysical Journal, 706 (2009): L41-45 [ADS; PDF]
Chen, C. H., Fitzgerald, M. P., & Smith, P. S. "A Possible Icy Kuiper Belt around HD 181327." Astrophysical Journal, 689 (2008): 539-544 [ADS; PDF]
Kalas, P., Graham, J. R., Chiang, E., Fitzgerald, M. P., Clampin, M., Kite, E. S., Stapelfeldt, K., Marois, C., & Krist, J. "Optical Images of an Exosolar Planet 25 Light-Years from Earth." Science, 322 (2008): 1345-1348 [ADS; PDF]
Maness, H. L., Fitzgerald, M. P., Paladini, R., Kalas, P., Duchêne, G., & Graham, J. R. "CARMA Millimeter-Wave Aperture Synthesis Imaging of the HD 32297 Debris Disk." Astrophysical Journal, 686 (2008): L25-L28 [ADS; PDF]
Fitzgerald, M. P., Kalas, P. G., & Graham, J. R. "A Ring of Warm Dust in the HD 32297 Debris Disk." Astrophysical Journal, 670 (2007): 557-564 [ADS; PDF]
Fitzgerald, M. P., Kalas, P. G., Duchêne, G., Pinte, C., & Graham, J. R. "The AU Mic Debris Disk: Multiwavelength Imaging and Modeling." Astrophysical Journal, 670 (2007): 536-556 [ADS; PDF]
Fitzgerald, M. P., & Graham, J. R. "Speckle Statistics in Adaptively Corrected Images." Astrophysical Journal, 637 (2006): 541-547 [ADS; PDF]

Postdoctoral Scholars:

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