High S/N, high resolution Image Slicer observations with UVES

UVES is the UV-Visual high-resolution Echelle Spectrograph mounted at the 8-m Kueyen (UT2) telescope of the ESO VLT. In order to allow use of UVES at its highest resolution of up to 110 000, also during non-optimal seeing conditions, the instrument is equipped with Bowen-Walraven type image slicers. These devices have exit slits of 0.3, 0.44 and 0.68 arcseconds and possibility to view the sky next to the slicer for sky subtraction. This paper addresses the relevant UVES optical design aspects, image slicer design and manufacturing, observing procedures and usage statistics. In the last part of the paper we give examples of high-S/N observations made with the 0.3 arcsecond image slicer.