PUEO : The CFHT Adaptive Optics Bonnette

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The adaptive optics bonnette project (AOB, or PUEO) started back in 1991. It uses curvature sensing, a concept applied to adaptive optics (AO) by Francois Roddier (Appl.Opt. 27 1223, 1988). It features a 19 elements bimorph mirror and curvature sensor, and was largely inspired by the AO system developed at the Institute for Astronomy (University of Hawaii) by the UHAO group . The Dominion Astrophysical Observatory (DAO) in Victoria (Canada) has designed the opto-mechanical bench, around an optical design by H. Richardson, from the University of Victoria. CILAS (formerly Laserdot) has developed the real-time computer hardware and control loop algorithms in close collaboration with CFHT staff. CFHT was in charge of the real-time optimization processes and of the Graphical User Interface. The systems were integrated at the Observatoire de Paris-Meudon . France. PUEO arrived at CFHT in January 1996. Engineering and commisionning tests on the telescope were performed during the first semester of 1996. The AOB is open to the CFHT scientific community since semester 1996 II.