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The present work provides analysis of the ELT M4 control system interaction with the deformable mirror supporting structure. The aim is the verification of the system robustness in terms of both stability and performance. The results of the analysis suggested the opportunity to improve the system dynamic behavior through the addition of damping on the system supporting structure. The solution adopted has been the introduction of active damping using six proof mass actuators (PMAs) placed on the ELT M4 reference body (RB). The effectiveness of this solution, which is now part of the ELT M4 final design, is proved through numerical simulations. Moreover, the PMA design together with some experimental tests performed on a pre-series device will be presented.

The ELT is a project led by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) for a 40-m class optical, near- and mid-infrared, ground-based telescope. When it will enter into operation, the ESO ELT will be the largest and most powerful optical telescope ever built. It will not only offer unrivalled light collecting power, but also exceedingly sharp images, thanks to its ability to compensate for the adverse effect of atmospheric turbulence on image sharpness. The basic optical solution for the ESO ELT is a folded three-mirror anastigmat, using a 39-m segmented primary mirror (M1), a 4-m convex secondary mirror (M2), and a 4-m concave tertiary mirror (M3), all active. Folding is provided by two additional flat mirrors sending the beams to either Nasmyth foci along the elevation axis of the telescope. The folding arrangement (flat M4 and M5 mirrors) is conceived to provide conveniently located flat surfaces for an adaptive shell (M4) and field stabilization (M5). The M5 Mirror and M5 Cell contracts started in 2019. Both sub-units are currently designed by the selected contractors. While the cell is still in an early design phase, the mirror design is in the final phase and the manufacturing of the blank has already started. With the focus on the M5 mirror, we flow down the key requirements to the cell and the mirror and highlight the main characteristics of the current design, discussing the challenges of mirror manufacturing. Finally, we conclude with the current status and an overview of the coming milestones.

The Adaptive Optics Facility (AOF) is an ESO project, which transformed Yepun, one of the four 8m telescopes in Paranal, into an adaptive telescope. This has been done by replacing the conventional secondary mirror of Yepun by a Deformable Secondary Mirror (DSM) and attaching four Laser Guide Stars (LGS) Units to its centerpiece. Additionally, two Adaptive Optics (AO) modules (GALACSI serving MUSE a 3D spectrograph, and GRAAL, serving Hawk I a wide field infrared imager) have been assembled onto the telescope Nasmyth adapters, each of them incorporating four LGS WaveFront Sensors (WFS) and one tip-tilt sensor used to control the DSM at 1 kHz frame rate. The complete AOF is installed on Yepun for more than one year now, and its commissioning is fully complete. This paper presents the most important and amazing features of the AOF, illustrated by some first science images obtained using MUSE/GALACSI in Ground Layer AO (GLAO) and Laser Tomography AO (LTAO) mode, and HAWK-I/GRAAL in GLAO mode. In the first part of the paper, on-sky performance of GRAAL and GALACSI is presented in terms of gain in image quality and even Strehl Ratio. Efficiency of the on-sky operation of the AOF is described. In the second part, future instruments making use of the AOF capabilities are presented.

The construction of a diffraction limitable telescope as large as the ESO’s ELT is enabled by its embedded deformable quaternary mirror. Besides its essential function in the telescope control, M4 also contributes to compensating the free atmosphere aberrations for all post-focal AO applications. The paper presents how the telescope manages M4 to maintain its optical performance while offering to the instruments a clean wavefront interface, supporting the desired AO functionalities. The paper reviews the telescope strategy to derive its wavefront dynamic properties directly from the analysis of the control data collected in science mode, with the goal to minimize the observatory time spent on dedicated wavefront calibration tasks.

The ELT is a project led by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) for a 40-m class optical, near- and mid-infrared, ground-based telescope. When it will enter into operation, the ESO ELT will be the largest and most powerful optical telescope ever built. It will not only offer unrivalled light collecting power, but also exceedingly sharp images, thanks to its ability to compensate for the adverse effect of atmospheric turbulence on image sharpness. The basic optical solution for the ESO ELT is a folded three-mirror anastigmat, using a 39-m segmented primary mirror (M1), a 4-m convex secondary mirror (M2), and a 4-m concave tertiary mirror (M3), all active. Folding is provided by two additional flat mirrors sending the beams to either Nasmyth foci along the elevation axis of the telescope. The folding arrangement (flat M4 and M5 mirrors) is conceived to provide conveniently located flat surfaces for an adaptive shell (M4) and field stabilization (M5). This paper provides an update of the specifications, design, and manufacturing of the ESO ELT optical systems

35th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 1290-1293, The outdoor exposure of PV modules to different climatic variables and physical stresses reduces the power delivery capacity of a PV module over time. The degradation of the PV performance over lifetime is usually determined within the variation of Power at maximum power point (PMPP) and Fill Factor (FF) where the same magnitude of losses of the PMPP can have different causes with different evolution over time. The physic based understanding and modeling of the performance, using the IV curve measurements, can be used to estimate important device parameters and evaluate the health state of the system. In this context the physical model of PV could provide more granulated information about degradation and underlying mechanisms to make better predictions about service life. Single diode model parameter evolution was estimated from 8 years of outdoor IV curve measurements under a range of operating conditions without translating to STC. The results show that the main ageing factors are closely related to the decrease in short-circuit current due to the optical degradation and increase in series resistance regardless of outdoor operating conditions.

Introduction Posterolateral rotatory instability is the most frequent form of elbow instability. This clinical entity, described by O’Driscoll et al. in 1991, concerns young subjects following elbow trauma. Diagnosis is founded on symptomatology and positive posterolateral rotatory instability test. Treatment is based on reconstruction of the ulnar bundle of the lateral collateral ligament. The present study assessed medium-term clinical and radiological results in lateral ligamentoplasty for posterolateral elbow instability. Materials and methods A retrospective continuous single-center series included 19 cases: 11 male, 8 female, operated on between 1995 and 2010; mean age was 37.8 years (range, 20–63 years). Surgery consisted in lateral ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction by autologous palmaris longus tendon graft following Nestor et al. (1992). Results Eighteen patients were assessed at a mean 61 months’ follow-up. Mean time off work was 3.2 months (range, 2–7 months); all patients returned to work. No revision surgery was required. Mean range of motion in flexion, extension, pronation and supination was respectively 135°, 8°, 84° and 76°. Instability test was systematically negative at follow-up. Mean Mayo Clinic and Quick-DASH scores were respectively 90 (range, 60–100) and 21 (range, 0–63). All patients were satisfied or very satisfied with their result. Conclusion Lateral ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction by autologous palmaris longus tendon graft provided reliable and lasting results. We consider it to be the reference treatment for chronic instability, and sometimes in acute post-traumatic instability. Level of evidence IV.

Resume Pre-requis Le syndrome du tunnel cubital (STC) est le deuxieme syndrome canalaire le plus frequent. Sa physiopathologie est mixte et il existe differentes options therapeutiques. Aucune n’a encore prouve sa superiorite en efficacite. But de l’etude Nous avons compare de facon retrospective les resultats, le taux de complications et les recidives des quatre principaux traitements du STC, pour identifier les tendances et optimiser les resultats. Il s’agit d’une etude multicentrique et retrospective. Patients et methodes Les patients presentant un STC clinique primitif prouve par electroneuromyogramme ont ete inclus et ont ete operes par l’une des 4 techniques suivantes : neurolyse in situ a ciel ouvert ou par voie endoscopique, transposition anterieure sous-cutanee ou sous-musculaire. Quatre centres specialises en chirurgie du membre superieur ont participe a l’etude et l’une des 4 precedentes interventions a toujours ete menee dans le meme centre. Les resultats subjectifs et objectifs, le taux de complications et les recidives ont ete compares au recul final. Resultats Cinq cent deux patients ont ete inclus et 375 ont ete revus avec un suivi moyen de 92 mois (9–144). Cent trois patients ont ete perdus de vue et 24 etaient decedes. Quelle que soit l’intervention realisee, plus de 90 % des patients ont ete gueris ou ameliores. Une seule douleur cicatricielle etait presente au recul final et etait associee a une neurolyse sous endoscopie. Aucune autre complication a long terme n’etait presente. Aucune des 4 techniques chirurgicales n’a provoque d’aggravation des symptomes. Six cas de recidive etaient notes au recul final : une de ces recidives etait associee a une neurolyse in situ a ciel ouvert et les cinq autres secondaires a une transposition sous-musculaire. Conclusion Le traitement chirurgical du STC est efficace. La transposition anterieure sous-musculaire induit des recidives. Contrairement aux donnees de la litterature, la transposition anterieure sous-cutanee, technique fiable et valide n’etait pas associee a un taux de complications superieur a la neurolyse in situ. Niveau de preuve Niveau IV.

For two years starting in February 2014, the AO modules GRAAL for HAWK-I and GALACSI for MUSE of the Adaptive Optics Facility project have undergone System Testing at ESO's Headquarters. They offer four different modes: NGS SCAO, LGS GLAO in the IR, LGS GLAO and LTAO in the visible. A detailed characterization of those modes was made possible by the existence of ASSIST, a test bench emulating an adaptive VLT including the Deformable Secondary Mirror, a star simulator and turbulence generator and a VLT focal plane re-imager. This phase aimed at validating all the possible components and loops of the AO modules before installation at the actual VLT that comprises the added complexity of real LGSs, a harsher non-reproducible environment and the adaptive telescope control. In this paper we present some of the major results obtained and challenges encountered during the phase of System Tests, like the preparation of the Acquisition sequence, the testing of the Jitter loop, the performance optimization in GLAO and the offload of low-order modes from the DSM to the telescope (restricted to the M2 hexapod). The System Tests concluded with the successful acceptance, shipping, installation and first commissioning of GRAAL in 2015 as well as the acceptance and shipping of GALACSI, ready for installation and commissioning early 2017.

The E-ELT M4 adaptive unit is a fundamental part of the E-ELT: it provides the facility level adaptive optics correction that compensates the wavefront distortion induced by atmospheric turbulence and partially corrects the structural deformations caused by wind. The unit is based on the contactless, voice-coil technology already successfully deployed on several large adaptive mirrors, like the LBT, Magellan and VLT adaptive secondary mirrors. It features a 2.4m diameter flat mirror, controlled by 5316 actuators and divided in six segments. The reference structure is monolithic and the cophasing between the segments is guaranteed by the contactless embedded metrology. The mirror correction commands are usually transferred as modal amplitudes, that are checked by the M4 controller through a smart real-time algorithm that is capable to handle saturation effects. A large hexapod provides the fine positioning of the unit, while a rotational mechanism allows switching between the two Nasmyth foci. The unit has entered the final design and construction phase in July 2015, after an advanced preliminary design. The final design review is planned for fall 2017; thereafter, the unit will enter the construction and test phase. Acceptance in Europe after full optical calibration is planned for 2022, while the delivery to Cerro Armazones will occur in 2023. Even if the fundamental concept has remained unchanged with respect to the other contactless large deformable mirrors, the specific requirements of the E-ELT unit posed new design challenges that required very peculiar solutions. Therefore, a significant part of the design phase has been focused on the validation of the new aspects, based on analysis, numerical simulations and experimental tests. Several experimental tests have been executed on the Demonstration Prototype, which is the 222 actuators prototype developed in the frame of the advanced preliminary design. We present the main project phases, the current design status and the most relevant results achieved by the validation tests.

Resume Introduction Les protheses de cheville (PTC) sont devenues une alternative a l’arthrodese dans le traitement de l’arthrose evoluee. « La difficulte de l’implantation d’une prothese totale de cheville et de la courbe d’apprentissage qui en resulte » a fait proposer « de reserver l’arthroplastie de la cheville aux centres pratiquant un nombre minimum d’implantations de protheses totales de cheville de dix par an, depuis au moins trois ans ». Nous avons cherche a etudier l’influence de la frequence des poses sur les complications et les resultats de ces protheses. Materiel et methode Cette serie retrospective portait sur 183 cas operes de 1997 a 2010 dans huit centres : trois centres realisaient au moins cinq PTC par an (100 cas) et six centres realisaient moins de cinq PTC par an (78 cas). Resultats L’evaluation clinique a porte sur 133 cas revus avec un recul moyen de 39 ± 29 mois. Le score AOFAS preoperatoire etait de 33 ± 4 et de 77 ± 15 au dernier recul. Le taux de survie etait de 86 % a cinq ans. Nous n’avons pas mis en evidence de difference significative entre les groupes pour le score AOFAS au dernier recul et la survie des protheses. Les « poseurs reguliers » presentaient plus de complications (45 % vs 13 %) mais moins d’echecs lies a l’implant (8 % vs 13 %) que les « poseurs occasionnels ». Discussion Le resultat d’une prothese de cheville nous semble surtout dependre de la pertinence de son indication et des gestes associes requis. Des lors, plus qu’a reserver la PTC a certains centres referents, il nous semble que le travail en reseau permettrait une meilleure evaluation des cas et du degre de specialisation requis pour la realisation des PTC tout en garantissant un acces egal des patients a cette option therapeutique. Niveau de preuve IV etude retrospective.

We used a proper combination of multiband high-resolution and wide field multi-wavelength observations collected at three different telescopes (HST, LBT and CFHT) to probe Blue Straggler Star (BSS) populations in the globular cluster M53. Almost 200 BSS have been identified over the entire cluster extension. The radial distribution of these stars has been found to be bimodal (similarly to that of several other clusters) with a prominent dip at ~60'' (~2 r_c) from the cluster center. This value turns out to be a factor of two smaller than the radius of avoidance (r_avoid, the radius within which all the stars of ~1.2 M_sun have sunk to the core because of dynamical friction effects in an Hubble time). While in most of the clusters with a bimodal BSS radial distribution, r_avoid has been found to be located in the region of the observed minimum, this is the second case (after NGC6388) where this discrepancy is noted. This evidence suggests that in a few clusters the dynamical friction seems to be somehow less efficient than expected. We have also used this data base to construct the radial star density profile of the cluster: this is the most extended and accurate radial profile ever published for this cluster, including detailed star counts in the very inner region. The star density profile is reproduced by a standard King Model with an extended core (~25'') and a modest value of the concentration parameter (c=1.58). A deviation from the model is noted in the most external region of the cluster (at r>6.5' from the center). This feature needs to be further investigated in order to address the possible presence of a tidal tail in this cluster.

We present the characteristics and some early scientific results of the first instrument at the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT), the Large Binocular Camera (LBC). Each LBT telescope unit will be equipped with similar prime focus cameras. The blue channel is optimized for imaging in the UV-B bands and the red channel for imaging in the VRIz bands. The corrected field-of-view of each camera is approximately 30 arcminutes in diameter, and the chip area is equivalent to a 23x23 arcmin2 field. In this paper we also present the commissioning results of the blue channel. The scientific and technical performance of the blue channel was assessed by measurement of the astrometric distortion, flat fielding, ghosts, and photometric calibrations. These measurements were then used as input to a data reduction pipeline applied to science commissioning data. The measurements completed during commissioning show that the technical performance of the blue channel is in agreement with original expectations. Since the red camera is very similar to the blue one we expect similar performance from the commissioning that will be performed in the following months in binocular configuration. Using deep UV image, acquired during the commissioning of the blue camera, we derived faint UV galaxy-counts in a ~500 sq. arcmin. sky area to U(Vega)=26.5. These galaxy counts imply that the blue camera is the most powerful UV imager presently available and in the near future in terms of depth and extent of the field-of-view. We emphasize the potential of the blue camera to increase the robustness of the UGR multicolour selection of Lyman break galaxies at redshift z~3., Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A. Uses aa.cls, 10 pages, 10 figures. Zero points changed in Table 2

The European Southern Observatory (ESO) together with external research institutes have built a Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics (MCAO) Demonstrator (MAD) to perform wide field-of-view adaptive optics correction (2′ in K band). The aim of MAD is to demonstrate the on-sky feasibility of the MCAO technique and to evaluate its critical aspects in the framework of both the 2nd generation instrumentation for the Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the Overwhelmingly Large Telescope (OWL). The MAD module will be installed on the VLT to perform on-sky observations. MAD comprises two deformable mirrors and two different multi-reference wavefront sensors with natural guide stars. In this article we present the MAD design, some aspects of the MAD calibration and the first closed-loop results in the laboratory in Single Conjugated Adaptive Optics (SCAO) and Ground Layer Adaptive Optics (GLAO) configurations. To cite this article: E. Marchetti et al., C. R. Physique 6 (2005).

We describe the scientific rationale and the preliminary optomechanical design for a 2 m class telescope designed to achieve ground layer correction over a ≈ 15 arcmin Field of View (FoV) to be located at the Dome-C site. The proposed science case is the detection of microlensing events in and by globular clusters and nearby galaxies that, for a high probability of success, requires exceptional seeing ( ≈ 0.2 arcsec or better) and a large target density (the centre of a globular cluster with a corresponding telescope FoV of ≈ 15 arcmin). This approach can capitalise on some of the unique qualities already observed above the Dome-C site, namely that the atmospheric turbulence is largely limited to a ground layer of small thickness only, a relatively low Greenwood frequency and uniterrupted sky coverage during the winter months for objects such as the globular cluster 47-Tuc. Further to the central science case of microlensing the telescope could provide a technological testbed for future telescopes and, given the unique atmospheric properties witnessed already during previous site testing compaigns, has the chance to provide a large amount of data (based on accurate and continuous light curves lasting several months) for fields of research outside that of microlensing. Details of the specific concepts of adaptive optics to be adopted for this telescope are outlined.

Abstract The present study was devised to analyze the relationship between sporting performance and physiological activation. Fourteen subjects participated in a modern pentathlon shooting competition. Six autonomic nervous system (ANS) parameters were simultaneously recorded in real time: Skin Potential, Skin resistance, Instantaneous Heart Rate and Respiratory Frequency, Skin Temperature, and Skin Blood Flow. The duration of concentration was considered the time lapse between the “start” order and the shot. Subjects tried to keep their arm and pistol stable during this phase. Results showed a complex relationship between activation, relaxation, and performance. ANS activity indicated an increase in physiological activation and at the same time, relaxation: activation was observed through electrodermal activity, while thermovascular indices indicated relaxation. Tonic level variations were, thus, a reliable indicator of the contrasting requirements of this sporting activity. Finally, the results challenge theories that have suggested that autonomic activity is undifferentiated.

The Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics module for the European Extremely Large Telescope has been designed to achieve uniform compensation of the atmospheric turbulence effects on a wide field of view in the near infrared. The design realized in the Phase A of the project is undergoing major revision in order to define a robust baseline in view of the next phases of the project. An overview of the on-going activities is presented.

A particular example of meter class flat mirrors is the adaptive M4 Unit of E-ELT, a deformable six petals mirror of 2.4m in diameter. We studied different approaches to the calibration and certification of M4, in a trade-off between stitching and full aperture measurements. Possibilities to test the mirror with a macro-stitching concept, both in normal and grazing incidence have been considered. Approaches reported in the literature, as the Ritchey-Common or the external Fizeau, and different beam expander setups, varying the collimating mirror and the nulling system, both on-axis and off-axis, have been deeply studied to understand performances and sensitivities to fabrication errors, alignment errors and environmental effects.

While the Deformable Secondary Mirror for the VLT is tested with the GRAAL adaptive system, the M4 adaptive mirror design is approaching detailed design. Although the two designs use the voice coil technology developed by Microgate and ADS, the M4 Unit requirements are more stringent. The M4 unit aims to provide adaptive correction and to cancel part of telescope wind shaking and static aberrations. The final specifications have been settled and the key performances will be demonstrated shortly on a one meter prototype. We present the main design drivers and associated requirements. We discuss what the challenges are in terms of stability and performance of the associated key technologies. We additionally describe the selected design, the current status of the project and the required schedule and work plan to manufacture the E-ELT quaternary mirror.

The Deformable Secondary Mirror (DSM) for the VLT ended the stand-alone electro-mechanical and optical acceptance process, entering the test phase as part of the Adaptive Optics Facility (AOF) at the ESO Headquarter (Garching). The VLT-DSM currently represents the most advanced already-built large-format deformable mirror with its 1170 voice-coil actuators and its internal metrology based on co-located capacitive sensors to control the shape of the 1.12m-diameter 2mm-thick convex shell. The present paper reports the final results of the electro-mechanical and optical characterization of the DSM executed in a collaborative effort by the DSM manufacturing companies (Microgate s.r.l. and A.D.S. International s.r.l.), INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri and ESO. The electro-mechanical acceptance tests have been performed in the company premises and their main purpose was the dynamical characterization of the internal control loop response and the calibration of the system data that are needed for its optimization. The optical acceptance tests have been performed at ESO (Garching) using the ASSIST optical test facility. The main purpose of the tests are the characterization of the optical shell flattening residuals, the corresponding calibration of flattening commands, the optical calibration of the capacitive sensors and the optical calibration of the mirror influence functions.

The hedonic dimension of the taste sensation plays a crucial role in the control of many taste-mediated responses related to food ingestion or rejection. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the emotional reactivity associated with each primary taste (sweet, salty, sour and bitter) through analysis of the variations of autonomic nervous system (ANS) parameters. Thirty-four healthy non-smoker volunteer subjects (17 males and 17 females, mean age = 28 years) participated in the experiment. Taste stimuli were solutions of 0.3 M sucrose (sweet), 0.15 M NaCl (salty), 0.02 M citric acid (sour) and 0.00015 M quinine sulfate (bitter). Evian mineral water was used as the diluent and control (neutral taste). Throughout the test, five ANS parameters (skin potential and skin resistance, skin blood flow and skin temperature, and instantaneous heart rate) were simultaneously and continuously recorded. Results of the ANOVA evidenced a significant effect of primary taste on skin resistance amplitude (P: < 0.001) and duration (P: < 0.0001), skin temperature amplitude (P: < 0.001), skin blood flow amplitude (vasoconstriction) (P: < 0.0001) and instantaneous heart rate increase (P: < 0.0001). Skin resistance and cardiac responses were the most relevant ANS parameters to distinguish among the taste solutions. The four primary tastes could be associated with significantly different ANS responses in relation to their hedonic valence: the pleasantly connoted and innate-accepted sweet taste induced the weakest ANS responses whereas the unpleasant connoted tastes (salty, sour and bitter) induced stronger ANS responses, the innate-rejected bitter taste inducing the strongest ones. Such a neurovegetative characterization of each primary taste could provide references for the hedonic analysis of the more complex gustative sensation attached to foods.

The study focused on patients suffering from perilymphatic fistula (PLF), whether they had undergone surgery or not. Vestibular disturbances can be harmless but are associated with varying symptoms, demonstrating disorders within the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The aim was to test whether the orthosympathetic is involved as the vagal part is often suspected of eliciting a feeling of sickness. Non-invasive and uninterrupted recording of ANS activity represents an objectivation technique to evidence such disturbances. Electrodermal activity, thermovascular variables, instantaneous cardiac rate and blood pressure were recorded. Discomfort was triggered experimentally by applying various stimulations successively to the intact ear then to the PLF (or operated) side. Twelve subjects took part in the experiment. Two types of ANS activity were distinguished: (1) phasic responses during stimulation and (2) tonic evolution thereafter. Results show strong activation in orthosympathetic variables when the PLF side was stimulated. No further significant difference between the two sides was to be observed following surgery. After stimulation, a sudden increase in skin resistance was observed, associated with slight bradycardia. No vagal signs having been evidenced, actual nausea may result from brief inhibition of sympathetic activation resulting, in turn from primary over-activation of this system.

Complex motor skills require planning and programming before execution. The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is thought to transcribe these central operations at the peripheral level: a motor act is thought to be simultaneously programmed by central and autonomic nervous structures. The aim of this study was to verify that autonomic responses reflect the quality of central motor programming leading to successful or failed performance when subjects are required to perform a complex motor skill. The specificity of the ANS response has already been demonstrated through direct recording from sympathetic fibres. It has also been demonstrated through several mental tasks and closed motor skills such as shooting: ANS responses have been shown to be capable of distinguishing success from failure. The aim of this experiment was to test whether ANS responses are capable of distinguishing two levels of achievement during the performance of a skill involving uncertainty (open skill). The subjects had to intercept a ball on a volleyball court, using the forearm receive and pass technique, in order to pass it on to a moving human target. The results were displayed in terms of accuracy: accurate passes were successful and inaccurate passes missed the target. Six autonomic variables were recorded simultaneously during the task: skin resistance and potential, skin blood flow and temperature, instantaneous heart rate and respiratory frequency. Results showed that autonomic variables were capable of distinguishing success from failure in 22 subjects out of 24. This made it possible to build up autonomic patterns characterising subjects' performances, and to confirm that autonomic functioning may reveal information processing in the central nervous system. Thus, the study of autonomic responses may constitute an inferential model of central nervous system functioning. Such a method could be used as an index for the control of mental preparation.

It is now well established that mental imagery practice improves motor skills, but performance efficiency depends on many factors: the main one being individual differences. The aim of this study is to evaluate performance improvement with imagery quality estimated during ANS recording. Volleyball training (“receiving serve”) afforded us the experimental paradigm. Subjects were required to pass an opponent’s serve to a given team mate. The receiver’s performance was evaluated from the accuracy of his pass to the targeted team mate. From these first test results, subjects were divided into two equivalent groups: imagers and controls. After mental practice the two groups were submitted to a posttest similar to the first one. During the pretest, posttest actual practice as well as the last session of corresponding mental rehearsal, six autonomic parameters were continuously recorded. Furthermore, and for the first time, a grade obtained from four different aspects of this response permits qualitative evaluation of each subject’s mental imagery. This estimation, based on the well-established link between performance and autonomic response, is validated by the fact that good correlation was obtained between this grade and the performance improvement of each of the “imager” group subjects.

Brain areas activated in human male sexual behavior have not been characterized precisely. For the first time, positron emission tomography (PET) was used to identify the brain areas activated in healthy males experiencing visually evoked sexual arousal. Eight male subjects underwent six measurements of regional brain activity following the administration of [15O]H2O as they viewed three categories of film clips: sexually explicit clips, emotionally neutral control clips, and humorous control clips inducing positive but nonsexual emotions. Statistical Parametric Mapping was used to identify brain regions demonstrating an increased activity associated with the sexual response to the visual stimulus. Visually evoked sexual arousal was characterized by a threefold pattern of activation: the bilateral activation of the inferior temporal cortex, a visual association area; the activation of the right insula and right inferior frontal cortex, which are two paralimbic areas relating highly processed sensory information with motivational states; and the activation of the left anterior cingulate cortex, another paralimbic area known to control autonomic and neuroendocrine functions. Activation of some of these areas was positively correlated with plasma testosterone levels. Although this study should be considered preliminary, it identified brain regions whose activation was correlated with visually evoked sexual arousal in males.

Among the factors which could explain avoidance behavior toward dental care, the typical clinging odor of the dental office, due to eugenol, is investigated in this study. The hypothesis is supported by the well-known effects of odorants which may influence cognition, emotion, and behavior. The association between the odor of eugenol and dental fear and anxiety could be explained by the fact that eugenates (eugenol-containing cements) are often used in potentially painful restorative dentistry on vital teeth. The emotional impact of the odors of eugenol and two other dental products (menthol and methyl methacrylate) was evaluated on volunteer subjects through autonomic nervous system (ANS) analysis by recording the variations of six ANS parameters (two electrodermal, two thermovascular, and two cardiorespiratory) induced by the inhalation of the odorants. After the experiment, subjects were asked to fill out an 11-point hedonic scale to rate the pleasantness vs. unpleasantness for each odorant. Results were compared between two groups of subjects divided according to their own dental experience (fearful and non-fearful dental-care subjects). These showed that, in both groups, menthol was rated as pleasant and methyl methacrylate as very unpleasant, whereas eugenol was judged pleasant by non-fearful subjects but unpleasant by fearful subjects. Concerning autonomic analysis, only eugenol induced significantly different patterns of ANS responses between the two groups, with stronger variations for dentally fearful subjects, mainly observed through the electrodermal channel. These results suggest that eugenol can be responsible for different emotional states, depending on the unpleasantness of the subjects' dental experience. This seems to confirm the role of odors as elicitors of emotional memories and to support the possible influence of eugenol odor on the avoidance behavior of some subjects toward dental care.

The aim of this study was to assess objectively the processes of mental rehearsing (imagery) by measuring variations of the autonomic nervous system (or ANS responses) during an open-ended complex motor skill in two actual experiments (volleyball) and during mental rehearsing taking place between them. Comparison between pre- and post-test (volleyball) scores related to imagining and non-imagining performances revealed significant improvement in the former (chi2 = 20.9, P0.00001) while in the latter chi2 = 27, P0.9, NS. The ANS parameters (skin potential and resistance, skin temperature and heat clearance, instantaneous heart rate and respiratory frequency) were quantified by original techniques and indices. Results from a principal component analysis showed a strong correlation between the responses in actual tasks (pre- and post-test volleyball) and during mental imagery, since the same preferential variables appeared on the main axis in 87% of cases. Thus the same autonomic channels seemed to be used during the actual activity and during the mental imagery of this activity. So far as phasic results were concerned, the main finding was a differing development of skill between imagining and non-imagining volleyball players. No clear difference was seen between pre- and post-tests in non-imaginers, except an increase in the median of the duration of the response observed in heat clearance, m1 and m2 respectively [m1 = 5.8 (SD 4.1) s, m2 = 7.6 (SD 3.9) s, P0.001]. Conversely, for other ANS parameters, a significant decrease was seen in the post-test responses compared to pre-test responses in the imagining group [for instance, the median of the duration of the resistance responses decreased from m1 = 12.6 (SD 4.3) s, and m2 = 7.8 (SD 4.5) s, P0.0001 in imaginers, while no change was observed in non-imaginers: 9.6 (SD 6.0) s vs 9.5 (SD 6.1) s, NS] except in the duration of the heat clearance response where an increase was seen [m1 = 7.3 (SD 5.0) s vs m2 = 7.6 (SD 3.1) s, NS]. Compared to the non-imagining group, the latter result may also have been associated with a response decrease in the imagining group. Thus mental rehearsing induced a specific pattern of autonomic response: decreased amplitude, shorter duration and negative skin potentials compared to the control group. As this pattern was associated with better performance in the tests it can be suggested that in the case of open-ended motor activity, mental rehearsing may help in the construction of schema which can be reproduced, without thinking, in actual practice. Thus a neural information process might develop in the central nervous system changing from a parallel into a serial treatment.

The aim of this paper is to analyse the relationship between self-report hedonic evaluations and the physiological expression of emotion in response to odorants. We try to solve the following questions: (1) Is it possible to find any experimental evidence that the sense of smell is linked with emotion? (2) What kind of odorants can be distinguished by autonomic analysis? (3) Is there a link between hedonics and autonomic information? The effects of odorants on the emotional process were estimated, in terms of autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity. Fifteen subjects inhaled five odorants as olfactory stimuli: lavender (LAV), ethyl acetoacetate (EAA), camphor (CAM), acetic acid (AA) and butyric acid (BA). After inhaling the odorant, subjects were requested to fill out an 11-point hedonic scale to rate its pleasantness versus unpleasantness. ANS parameters were as follows: two electrodermal responses, skin potential (SP) and resistance (SR); two thermovascular parameters, skin blood flow (SBF) and skin temperature (ST); and two cardiorespiratory parameters; instantaneous respiratory frequency (IRF) and instantaneous heart rate (IHR). Simultaneous recording of six parameters showed that specific autonomic patterns were associated with each odorant. An analysis of variance made it possible to differentiate among the five odorants. Two-by-two odorant comparisons for autonomic responses using Tukey's HSD multiple comparison test only permitted differentiation between pleasant odorants (LAV and EAA) and unpleasant (AA and BA) ones, but camphor was differentiated from both pleasant and unpleasant odorants. Each odorant elicited responses in the different parameters, yet subjects responded through their preferential channels; an average of two channels was used by each subject. These results when compared with those obtained with other senses (visual and auditory), did not evidence the postulated preferential link between olfaction and emotion. A strong link between hedonics and ANS response could be demonstrated when considering each subject and mainly through his/her preferential channel(s); conversely a weak correlation (SR duration excepted) was obtained between inter-subjects' hedonic evaluation. It seems that for a given population the autonomic response reflect the odor valence only through some parameters related to the main preferential channel(s) and thus the global autonomic pattern has to be considered.

A method using six sensors for measuring the activity of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) is presented. The measured parameters are: skin potential, skin resistance, skin blood flow, skin temperature, instantaneous heart rate, and instantaneous respiratory frequency. The multiparametric measurement of variables of different natures provides complementary information relating to ANS activity. The sensors are characterized by being non-invasive and painless and provide minimal discomfort to the subjects. The sensor's instrumentation system is portable and can be used in laboratory and in real conditions (sports field, on board a vehicle, air-traffic control room, etc.) and presents high immunity to noise. experiments were performed on 11 marksmen during a shooting competition to study the correlation between ANS activity and shooting performance on the basis of the subjects' control of their emotional reactivity and concentration/relaxation technique.

Bioelectronic phenomena related to the activity of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) activity mainly take place in the deep part of the brain where they are difficult to record. The hand skin, being richly innervated by sympathetic efferent fibres, offers an interface from which relevant ANS-related signals can be recorded. Two non-invasive bioelectronic measurements (skin resistance and potential) reflecting the activity of the ANS were performed at the skin surface. These measurements were complemented by thermovascular (skin microcirculation and skin temperature) and cardiorespiratory (instantaneous heart rate and instantaneous respiratory frequency) measurements. The bioelectric measurements were performed using non-invasive Ag/AgCl electrodes. Non-metallic NASICON (Na Super Ionic Conductor) electrodes were tested and compared with traditional electrodes for the optimization of bioelectric measurements. Signal analysis and data processing was accomplished by means of original indices on a specially designed PC-based software. The methodology was used to evaluate vigilance level, mental workload, and emotional response during tasks (sporting activity, mental calculation, olfactive stimuli) and in critical situations (car crash avoidance).

The ESO Adaptive Optics Facility (AOF) consists in an evolution of one of the ESO VLT unit telescopes to a laser driven adaptive telescope with a deformable mirror in its optical train. The project has completed the procurement phase and several large structures have been delivered to Garching (Germany) and are being integrated (the AO modules GRAAL and GALACSI and the ASSIST test bench). The 4LGSF Laser (TOPTICA) has undergone final design review and a pre-production unit has been built and successfully tested. The Deformable Secondary Mirror is fully integrated and system tests have started with the first science grade thin shell mirror delivered by SAGEM. The integrated modules will be tested in stand-alone mode in 2012 and upon delivery of the DSM in late 2012, the system test phase will start. A commissioning strategy has been developed and will be updated before delivery to Paranal. A substantial effort has been spent in 2011-2012 to prepare the unit telescope to receive the AOF by preparing the mechanical interfaces and upgrading the cooling and electrical network. This preparation will also simplify the final installation of the facility on the telescope. A lot of attention is given to the system calibration, how to record and correct any misalignment and control the whole facility. A plan is being developed to efficiently operate the AOF after commissioning. This includes monitoring a relevant set of atmospheric parameters for scheduling and a Laser Traffic control system to assist the operator during the night and help/support the observing block preparation. © (2012) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

A 40 meters class telescope does require adaptive optics to provide few milli arcseconds resolution images. In the current design of the E-ELT, M4 provides adaptive correction and has also to cancel part of telescope wind shaking and static aberrations. The 2.4 meters adaptive mirror will provide as well Nasmyth focus selection. We will present the main design drivers and the main specifications quaternary mirror will have to meet. We will discuss what the challenges are in term of stability and performance of the associated key technologies. We will finally describe the current baseline design and the required schedule and work plan to adequately manufacture the E-ELT quartenary mirror.

The VLT Deformable secondary is planned to be installed on the VLT UT#4 as part of the telescope conversion into the Adaptive Optics test Facility (AOF). The adaptive unit is based on the well proven contactless, voice coil motor technology that has been already successfully implemented in the MMT, LBT and Magellan adaptive secondaries, and is considered a promising technical choice for the forthcoming ELT-generation adaptive correctors, like the E-ELT M4 and the GMT ASM. The VLT adaptive unit has been recently assembled after the completion of the manufacturing and modular test phases. In this paper, we present the most relevant aspects of the system integration and report the preliminary results of the electromechanical tests performed on the unit. This test campaign is a typical major step foreseen in all similar systems built so far: thanks to the metrology embedded in the system, that allows generating time-dependent stimuli and recording in real time the position of the controlled mirror on all actuators, typical dynamic response quality parameters like modal settling time, overshoot and following error can be acquired without employing optical measurements. In this way the system dynamic and some aspect of its thermal and long term stability can be fully characterized before starting the optical tests and calibrations.

supplément; International audience; INTRODUCTION: Total ankle arthroplasty (TAA) has become an alternative to ankle arthrodesis in the treatment of advanced osteoarthritis. "The difficulty of performing a total ankle replacement and the corresponding steep learning curve" has resulted in a proposal "to limit ankle replacement to centers that have performed at least ten total ankle replacements for at least 3 years". The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of the frequency of TAA procedures on the complications and outcome of these arthroplasties.MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective series included 183 cases who underwent surgery between 1997-2010 in eight centers: three high volume centers performed at least five TAA per year (100 cases) and six low volume centers performed less than five TAA per year (78 cases).RESULTS: The clinical assessment was performed in 133 cases that were reviewed after a mean 39 months ± 29 of follow-up. The preoperative AOFAS score was 33 ± 4 and 77 ± 15 at the final follow-up. The five-year survival rate was 86%. No significant difference was found between the groups for the AOFAS score or implant survival at the final follow-up. The high volume centers experienced more complications (45% versus 13%) but fewer implant failures (8% versus 13%) overall compared to the low volume centers.DISCUSSION: The outcome of TAA depends mainly upon the pertinence of the indication and the associated procedures that may be necessary. Rather than limiting TAA to high volume reference centers, we suggest that the assessment of each case within a predetermined area should be done in a network. This would determine the degree of specialization required for each TAA case and provide all patients with safe and equal access to this therapeutic option.LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: IV - Retrospective study.

International audience; The miniaturization of devices and the increase of operating frequencies are two important issues for communication system development. This requires a high degree of integration, higher performance and lower cost. Isolator is an important non-reciprocal passive component for source protection. In most cases, the non-reciprocal effect is based on field displacement phenomenon induced by a magnetized ferrite material. In this paper we propose a new design of a coplanar isolator based on field displacement, composed of a non-symmetrical coplanar transmission line, made from a ferrite layer and ground plane below. Simulations were performed using HFSS software. Measurements were made on a first 1000 μm-thick YIG film sample giving 1 dB of insertion losses and 17 dB isolation and on a second sample made from a 150 μm-thick YIG ferrite sample giving an insertion loss lower than 2 dB. Interesting applications of this isolator structure are considered.

In order to mitigate the risks of development of the M4 adaptive mirror for the E-ELT, CILAS has proposed to build a demonstration prototype and breadboards dedicated to this project. The objectives of the demonstration prototype concern the manufacturing issues such as mass assembly, integration, control and polishing but also the check the global dynamical and thermal behaviour of the mirror. The local behaviour of the mirror (polishing quality, influence function, print through...) is studied through a breadboard that can be considered as a piece of the final mirror. We propose in this paper to present our breadboard strategy, to define and present our mock-up and to comment the main results and lessons learned.

The ESO Adaptive Optics Facility (AOF) consists in an evolution of one of the ESO VLT unit telescopes to a laser driven adaptive telescope with a deformable mirror in its optical train, in this case the secondary 1.1m mirror, and four Laser Guide Stars (LGSs). This evolution implements many challenging technologies like the Deformable Secondary Mirror (DSM) including a thin shell mirror (1.1 m diameter and 2mm thin), the high power Na lasers (20W), the low Read-Out Noise (RON) WaveFront Sensor (WFS) camera (< 1e-) and SPARTA the new generation of Real Time Computers (RTC) for adaptive control. It also faces many problematic similar to any Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) and as such, will validate many technologies and solutions needed for the European ELT (E-ELT) 42m telescope. The AOF will offer a very large (7 arcmin) Field Of View (FOV) GLAO correction in J, H and K bands (GRAAL+Hawk-I), a visible integral field spectrograph with a 1 arcmin GLAO corrected FOV (GALACSI-MUSE WFM) and finally a LTAO 7.5" FOV (GALACSI-MUSE NFM). Most systems of the AOF have completed final design and are in manufacturing phase. Specific activities are linked to the modification of the 8m telescope in order to accommodate the new DSM and the 4 LGS Units assembled on its Center-Piece. A one year test period in Europe is planned to test and validate all modes and their performance followed by a commissioning phase in Paranal scheduled for 2014.

The M5 Field stabilization Unit (M5FU) for European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) is a fast correcting optical system that shall provide tip-tilt corrections for the telescope dynamic pointing errors and the effect of atmospheric tiptilt and wind disturbances. A M5FU scale 1 demonstrator (M5FU1D) is being built to assess the feasibility of the key elements (actuators, sensors, mirror, mirror interfaces) and the real-time control algorithm. The strict constraints (e.g. tip-tilt control frequency range 100Hz, 3m ellipse mirror size, mirror first Eigen frequency 300Hz, maximum tip/tilt range ± 30 arcsec, maximum tiptilt error < 40 marcsec) have been a big challenge for developing the M5FU Conceptual Design and its scale 1 demonstrator. The paper summarises the proposed design for the final unit and demonstrator and the measured performances compared to the applicable specifications.

We present our design of the E-ELT M4 Adaptive Unit based on voice-coil driven deformable mirror technology. This technology was developed by INAF-Arcetri, Microgate and ADS team in the past 15 years and it has been adopted by a number of large ground based telescopes as the MMT, LBT, Magellan and lastly the VLT in the frame of the Adaptive Telescope Facility project. Our design is based on contactless force actuators made by permanent magnets glued on the back of the deformable mirror and coils mounted on a stiff reference structure. We use capacitive sensors to close a position loop co-located with each actuator. Dedicated high performance parallel processors are used to implement the local de-centralized control at actuator level and a centralized feed-forward computation of all the actuators forces. This allowed achieving in our previous systems dynamic performances well in line with the requirements of the M4 Adaptive Unit (M4AU) case. The actuator density of our design is in the order of 30-mm spacing for a figure of about 6000 actuators on the M4AU and it allows fulfilling the fitting error and corrections requirements of the E-ELT high order DM. Moreover, our contact-less technology makes the Deformable Mirror tolerant to up 5% actuators failures without spoiling system capability to reach its specified performances, besides allowing large mechanical tolerances between the reference structure and the deformable mirror. Finally, we present the Demonstration Prototype we are building in the frame of the M4AU Phase B study to measure the optical dynamical performances predicted by our design. Such a prototype will be fully representative of the M4AU features, in particular it will address the controllability of two adjacent segments of the 2-mm thick mirror and implement the actuators "brick" modular concept that has been adopted to dramatically improve the maintainability of the final unit.

Cilas proposes a M4 adaptive mirror (M4AM) that corrects the atmospheric turbulence at high frequencies and residual tip-tilt and defocus due to telescope vibrations by using piezostack actuators. The design presents a matrix of nearly 7000 actuators (hexagonal geometry, spacing equal to 29 mm) leading to a fitting error simulated by Onera reaching the fitting error goal. The mirror is held by a positioning system which ensures all movements of the mirror at low frequency and selects the focus (Nasmyth A or B) using a hexapod concept. This subsystem is fixed rigidly to the mounting system and permits mirror displacements. The M4 control system (M4CS) ensures the connection between the telescope control/monitoring system and the M4 unit - positioning system (M4PS) and piezostack actuators in particular. This subsystem is composed of electronic boards, mechanical support fixed to the mounting structure and the thermal hardware. With piezostack actuators, most of the thermal load is minimized and dissipated in the electronic boards and not in the adaptive mirror. The mounting structure (M4MS) is the mechanical interface with the telescope (and the ARU in particular) and ensures the integrity and stability of M4 unit subsystems. M4 positioning system and mounting structure are subcontracted to Amos company. We will also report on the manufacturing of the demonstration prototype that will be tested in the next phase. Keywords: Adaptive optic, Adaptive unit, E-ELT, hexapod, mirror, PZT actuator

The 'Hematron' is a non-invasive sensor (disc 25 mm o.d., 4 mm thick) for the measurement of skin blood flow (SBF) in the capillary layers from the surface of the skin. A constant temperature difference is maintained between the center and the periphery of the sensor by a PID control device. The heat power injected into the skin by a micro-fold heater is equal to the heat power washed out by the blood flow in the capillary network. SBF may be recorded from continuous measurement up to 1 Hz. The results are expressed in units of thermal conductivity (mW/cm °C): minimum value 2.5 mW/cm °C (null blood flow); maximum value 10 mW/cm °C (vasodilation). The calibration is carried out by physical models: media, the thermal conductivity of which is constant and well defined (vaseline, polyacrylamide gel), rotating water tank with low linear speed, perfused catheter bunch. The high repeatability of this quantitative method allows long-term measurement and inter- or intrasubject comparison. This sensor is used for the study of physiological tests on SBF (valsalva maneuver, effect of heat, posture, etc…), for the study of the vascularization of burnt skin and graft, the effects of pharmacological or cosmetic agents and for per and post operative monitoring. As SBF is related to brain activity, the sensor is used for the study of the vigilance status and the emotional response (sport, driving of vehicle, mental imagery).

Resume Objectif Mettre en evidence le role de l'entrainement mental dans le cas d'une tâche de reception de service en volley-ball. Methodes et resultats Le protocole comporte trois phases: la premiere constitue la reference et permet de diviser la population en deux groupes homogenes en performance (codage de la precision de la reception sur un passeur fixe ou mobile) et en capacite d'imagerie (evaluee par le movement imagery questionnaire). La seconde phase consiste en 20 seances d'entrainement mental sur passeur fixe pour le premier groupe appele imageur et 20 seances d'activite neutre pour le second, non imageur. La troisieme phase teste la retention dans des conditions identiques a la premiere. L'activite du systeme nerveux vegetatif a ete enregistree en continu, au cours des phases 1 et 3. La precision des receptions a ete amelioree seulement chez le groupe des imageurs mais uniquement pour la tâche travaillee mentalement: reception sur passeur fixe. Entre les phases 1 et 3, les reponses vegetatives ont evolue uniquement chez les imageurs. Une diminution de leur amplitude et de leur duree accompagne l'apprentissage et signe l'automatisation du geste. Conclusion L'entrainement mental ameliore la performance motrice, a condition qu'elle soit centree specifiquement sur le mouvement a apprendre.

A chemical agent contained in the rat pup preputial gland was found to regulate anogenital licking, a behavioral pattern crucial to pup survival. Combined gas chromatography and mass spectrometric analysis led to identification of four components in addition to high molecular alkanes (waxes). Independent synthesis added to behavioral observations were used to quantify the dam's response to these components. Among them, dodecyl propionate (DP), a pheromone-like compound, appears to be the only one efficient enough to induce, in the dam, behavior patterns similar to those observed with crude lipidic extract from the preputial gland secretion. Various esters previously were predicted in the adult rat preputial gland. DP is the first ester identified from mammalian infant tissue. These results, in combination with previous findings, allow discussion of the DP pheromonal role.

High-contrast imagers dedicated to the search for extrasolar planets are currently being developed for the VLT (SPHERE) and Gemini (GPI) observatories. A vital part of such a high-contrast imager is the extreme adaptive optics (XAO) system that very efficiently removes effects of atmospheric turbulence and instrument aberrations. The high order test bench (HOT) implements an XAO system under realistic telescope conditions reproduced by star and turbulence generators. New technological developments (32x32 actuator micro deformable mirror, read-noise free electron multiplying CCD60, SPARTA real time computer) are used to study and compare two potential XAO wave front sensors: The Pyramid- and the Shack-Hartmann wave front sensors. We will describe the overall design of HOT including the sub-systems. We will present the closed loop study results of the behavior of the Shack-Hartmann wave front sensor in terms of linearity, sensitivity to calibration errors, performance and other specific issues.

A 42 meters telescope does require adaptive optics to provide few milli arcseconds resolution images. In the current design of the E-ELT, M4 provides adaptive correction while M5 is the field stabilization mirror. Both mirrors have an essential role in the E-ELT telescope strategy since they do not only correct for atmospheric turbulence but have also to cancel part of telescope wind shaking and static aberrations. Both mirrors specifications have been defined to avoid requesting over constrained requirements in term of stroke, speed and guide stars magnitude. Technical specifications and technological issues are discussed in this article. Critical aspects and roadmap to assess the feasibility of such mirrors are outlined.

We report laboratory development of coronagraphic devices to be implemented on the High Order Testbench (HOT) to assess intensity reduction between them at a high Strehl ratio regime. The high order test bench implements extreme adaptive optics with realistic telescope conditions reproduced by star and turbulence generators. A 32×32 actuator micro deformable mirror, one pyramid wave front sensor, one Shack-Hartmann wave front sensor and the ESO SPARTA realtime computer. This will enable characterization and comparative study of different types of coronagraphs in realistic conditions. We have developed several prototypes of promising coronagraphs concepts: Four Quadrants Phase Mask 1

The Adaptive Optics Facility is a project to convert one VLT-UT into a specialized Adaptive Telescope. The present secondary mirror (M2) will be replaced by a new M2-Unit hosting a 1170 actuators deformable mirror. The 3 focal stations will be equipped with instruments adapted to the new capability of this UT. Two instruments are in development for the 2 Nasmyth foci: Hawk-I with its AO module GRAAL allowing a Ground Layer Adaptive Optics correction and MUSE with GALACSI for GLAO correction and Laser Tomography Adaptive Optics correction. A future instrument still needs to be defined for the Cassegrain focus. Several guide stars are required for the type of adaptive corrections needed and a four Laser Guide Star facility (4LGSF) is being developed in the scope of the AO Facility. Convex mirrors like the VLT M2 represent a major challenge for testing and a substantial effort is dedicated to this. ASSIST, is a test bench that will allow testing of the Deformable Secondary Mirror and both instruments with simulated turbulence. This article describes the Adaptive Optics facility systems composing associated with it.

The Large Binocular Telescope is currently equipped with a couple of wide field Prime Focus. The two cameras are optimized for, respectively, the blue and the red portion of the visible spectrum. The history of this project is here sketched up and the current status is shown. The Blue channel is currently working onboard the telescope and provided what has been named the first-light of the telescope in single eye configuration.

Extreme adaptive optics systems dedicated to the search for extrasolar planets are currently being developed for most 8-10 meter telescopes. Extensive computer simulations have shown the ability of both Shack-Hartmann and pyramid wave front sensors to deliver high Strehl ratio correction expected from extreme adaptive optics but few experiments have been realized so far. The high order test bench implements extreme adaptive optics on the MACAO test bench with realistic telescope conditions reproduced by star and turbulence generators. A 32×32 actuator micro deformable mirror, one pyramid wave front sensor, one Shack-Hartmann wave front sensor, the ESO SPARTA real time computer and an essentially read-noise free electron multiplying CCD60 (E2V CCD60) provide an ideal cocoon to study the different behavior of the two types of wave front sensors in terms of linearity, sensitivity to calibration errors, noise propagation, specific issues to pyramid or Shack-Hartmann wave front sensors, etc. We will describe the overall design of this test bench and will focus on the characterization of two essential sub-systems: the micro deformable mirror and the phase screens.