Multi-object adaptive optics (MOAO) has been demonstrated by the CANARY instrument on the William Herschel Telescope. However, for proposed MOAO systems on the next generation Extremely Large Telescopes, such as EAGLE, many challenges remain. Here we investigate requirements that MOAO operation places on deformable mirrors (DMs) using a full end-to-end Monte-Carlo AO simulation code. By taking into consideration a prior global ground-layer (GL) correction, we show that actuator density for the MOAO DMs can be reduced with little performance loss. We note that this reduction is only possible with the addition of a GL DM, whose order is greater than or equal to that of the original MOAO mirrors. The addition of a GL DM of lesser order does not affect system performance (if tip/tilt star sharpening is ignored). We also quantify the maximum mechanical DM stroke requirements (3.5 µm desired) and provide tolerances for the DM alignment accuracy, both lateral (to within an eighth of a sub-aperture) and rotational (to within 0.2 • ). By presenting results over a range of laser guide star asterism diameters, we ensure that these results are equally applicable for laser tomographic AO systems. We provide the opportunity for significant cost savings to be made in the implementation of MOAO systems, resulting from the lower requirement for DM actuator density.

Building on the comprehensive White Paper on the scientific case for multi-object spectroscopy on the European ELT, we present the top-level instrument requirements that are being used in the Phase A design study of the MOSAIC concept. The assembled cases span the full range of E-ELT science and generally require either 'high multiplex' or 'high definition' observations to best exploit the excellent sensitivity and spatial performance of the telescope. We highlight some of the science studies that are now being used in trade-off studies to inform the capabilities of MOSAIC and its technical design.

No abstract