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Control-Oriented Adaptive Optics: Lecture Notes for Automation and Aerospace Engineers

Year: 2026

Type: preprint

Abstract: These lecture notes provide a control-oriented foundation for Adaptive Optics (AO), specifically tailored for Master of Science and PhD students in Automation and Aerospace Engineering. While traditional AO literature is typically written from the perspective of optical physics, this manuscript reframes the entire AO problem through the lens of Systems and Control Engineering. The text covers the mathematical modeling of the atmospheric disturbance and optomechanical plant, spatial calibration and interaction matrices, temporal dynamics and loop delays, and the transition from single-conjugate integral controllers to advanced state-space estimations and wide-field tomographic architectures. A dedicated optical primer is included for engineers without a background in optics.

Source: Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.21977801

Author: Agapito, Guido

Institutions: Arcetri Astrophysical Observatory, National Institute for Astrophysics

Language: English

Topic: Adaptive optics and wavefront sensing

Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

OpenAlex ID: W7203648548

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