Untitled - Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de l'Observatoire de Grenoble

organization of astronomy events like the transit of Venus in June 2004 which attracted ∼ 2,000 visitors
and featured an Internet link to New Zealand projected on a wide screen; contribution to a laser version
of the Fizeau experiment for measuring the speed of light, in the framework of the World Physics Year
’05;
• Actions on a national scale: public conferences by various LAOG members, interviews, consulting for
popular astronomy journals, etc.
LAOG’s research is also beneficial for the industrial world. In the past years, we have deposited five patents:
• ”Dispositif d’actionnement électrostatique miniature et installation comprenant de tels dispositifs”, European
Patent, CNRS/CEA, FR0206293 from 23/05/2002. Patent holders: J. Charton and E. Stadler.
• ”Composant MEMS électrostatique permettant un déplacement vertical important”, French patent, CNRS/CEA,
FR0351211 from 26/12/2003. Patent holders: J. Charton and C. Divoux (CEA/LETI).
• ”Miroir déformable magnétique”, French Patent, CNRS, FR0452342 from 12/10/2004. Patent Holders:
J. Charton, Z. Hubert, L. Jocou, E. Stadler, P. Kern and J.-L. Beuzit.
Two applications are currently proceeded in the frame of our activities on future detectors:
• ”Détecteur et caméra spectroscopique interférentiels”, French Patent, UJF INPI 04/52992, applied December
15th 2004. Patent Holders: le Coarer, E., Benech, P.
• ”Spectrographes à onde contra-propagative”, French Patent, UJF INPI 05/08429, applied August 8th
2005. Patent Holders: le Coarer, E., Benech, P., Blaize, S., Kern, P., Lérondel, G., Morand, A.
More details are given in the GRIL part.
1.4 Budget: resources
LAOG’s operating budget resources can be broken down in five sources, for a total of ∼ 400 − 500 kE/yr. Their
respective contributions are illustrated graphically in figure 1.7 for the period 2001-2005. We now comment
these funding sources in turn.
• “Recurrent” funds, i.e., operating budget from the Ministry of Education and CNRS, on a four-year
basis (the “quadriennal contract”). 3 As figure 1.7 shows, in rough terms this funding accounts for about
half of the total operating budget, so it is a very important contribution that should be adequately adjusted
to the laboratory demographic evolution. Over the 2002-2005 period, this has in fact been approximately
the case (∼ 20% increase).
• “Specific” budget, mainly from CNRS but also UJF (competitive “BQR” = Bonus Qualité Recherche).
Basically, this budget follows that of the Ministry of Education, but sometimes one can obtain exceptional
dotations (boost for a newly accepted project, replacement of an old laboratory car, etc.). It is mainly
used for R& D activities, i.e., it is an investment corresponding to the scientific policy of LAOG to develop
research for future instruments which are not yet funded, by definition. This line has fluctuated by more
than a factor 2 (between 75 kE and 180 kE) depending on the circumstances: for instance the largest
amount corresponds to a UJF BQR of 60 kE in 2004.
3 Note for our foreign members of our Visiting Committee. The level of funding results from the conclusions of the Evaluation
Committee (the present exercise). It is based on a sum per capita (permanent researchers only; publishing engineers and nonpermanent
staff like students of post-docs are not taken into account), which is calculated on the basis of publications, times a
certain coefficient reflecting the quality of the laboratory, and is ultimately negotiated between the Ministry of education and the
local university, UJF in our case.
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