Abstract :
The presentation addresses spatial audio technologies and cognitive aspects linked to immersive and interactive contexts such as sound installations, virtual reality and games. Among the large diversity of 3D audiotechnologies, binaural synthesis, associated with various tracking devices, or Wavefield Synthesis (WFS), the spatialization of audio through the recreation of a virtual source's wavefront, are uniquely suited to immersive and interactive applications. One of their most interesting features is their ability to maintain or even manipulate the congruence between the acoustical cues involved in auditory localization and the proprioceptive cues induced by our motion in space. This property makes them also particularly appropriate for investigating neuroscience questions on spatial perception and multisensory integration mechanisms. Conversely, neuroscience studies may provide useful insights to improve audio rendering models and technologiesby taking into account human spatial perception. The presentation addresses some of the current research topics on 3D audio rendering techniques and examples of their use for neuroscience studies. It will also be illustrated with various applications taken from the artistic and health domains.