Performance of the Near-infrared coronagraphic imager on Gemini-South
  We present the coronagraphic and adaptive optics performance of the Gemini-South Near-Infrared Coronagraphic Imager (NICI). NICI includes a dual-channel imager for simultaneous spectral difference imaging, a dedicated 85-element curvature adaptive optics system, and a built-in Lyot coronagraph. It is specifically designed to survey for and image large extra-solar gaseous planets on the Gemini Observatory 8-meter telescope in Chile. We present the on-sky performance of the individual subsystems along with the end-to-end contrast curve. These are compared to our model predictions for the adaptive optics system, the coronagraph, and the spectral difference imaging. 
Mark Chun, Doug Toomey, Zahed Wahhaj, Beth Biller, Etienne Artigau,   Tom Hayward, Mike Liu, Laird Close, Markus Hartung, Fr...