  We present the first optical (590--890 nm) imaging polarimetry observations
of the pre-transitional protoplanetary disk around the young solar analog LkCa
15, addressing a number of open questions raised by previous studies. We detect
the previously unseen far side of the disk gap, confirm the highly eccentric
scattered-light gap shape that was postulated from near-infrared imaging, at
odds with the symmetric gap inferred from millimeter interferometry.
Furthermore, we resolve the inner disk for the first time and trace it out to
30 AU. This new source of scattered light may contribute to the near-infrared
interferometric signal attributed to the protoplanet candidate LkCa 15 b, which
lies embedded in the outer regions of the inner disk. Finally, we present a new
model for the system architecture of LkCa 15 that ties these new findings
together. These observations were taken during science verification of SPHERE
ZIMPOL and demonstrate this facility's performance for faint guide stars under
adverse observing conditions.

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics;Solar and Stellar Astrophysics