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Chapter 5
Operation
Introduction
Once the MicroMAX camera has been installed, camera operation is basically
straightforward. In most applications you simply establish optimum performance using
the Focus mode (WinView/32 or WinSpec/32), set the target detector temperature, wait
until the temperature has stabilized at the set temperature (see the "Setting the
Temperature" section in this chapter), and then do actual data acquisition in the
Acquire mode. Additional considerations regarding experiment setup and equipment
configuration are addressed in the software manual.
CCD
Preamp
Cable driver
Incoming photons
Up/down integrator
Fast A/D
Camera
Controller
Computer
Slow A/D
Digital processor
Video
display
Display Storage
Interface board
RS PCI or USB 2.0
Interface module
TAXI or USB 2.0
During data acquisition,
the CCD array is exposed
to a source and charge
accumulates in the pixels.
After the defined exposure
time, the accumulated
signal is readout of the
array, digitized, and then
transferred to the host
computer. Upon data
transfer, the data is data is displayed and/or stored
via the application software. This sequence is
illustrated by the block diagram shown in
Figure
14.
Whether or not the data is displayed and/or stored
depends on the data collection operation (Focus or
Acquire
) that has been selected in the application
software. In WinView and WinSpec, these operations
use the Experiment Setup parameters to establish the
exposure time (the period when signal of interest is allowed to accumulate on the CCD).
As might be inferred from the names, Focus is more likely to be used in setting up the
system (see the "First Light" discussions) and Acquire is then used for the collection
and storage of data. Briefly:
Figure 14. Block Diagram of
Light Path in System
• In Focus mode, the number of frames and accumulations settings are ignored. A
single frame is acquired and displayed, another frame is acquired and overwrites the
currently displayed data, and so on until Stop is selected. Only the last frame
acquired before Stop is selected can be stored. When Stop is selected, the File Save
function can be used to save the currently displayed data. This mode is particularly
convenient for familiarization and setting up. For ease in focusing, the screen refresh
rate should be as rapid as possible, achieved by operating with axes and cross-
sections off, and with Zoom 1:1 selected.
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