A position sensitive detector for EUV remote sensing

The authors describe a photon-counting extreme ultraviolet (EUV) detector system used in a rocket-borne spectroscopic instrument for remote sensing of upper atmospheric composition and temperature. The detector uses a KBr coated microchannel plate (MCP) Z stack in combination with a wedge-and-strip image readout system. Three separate detector fields of view are used to sense the Earth dayglow spectrum (980 A to 1040 A, and 1300 A to 1360 A) and the solar EUV spectrum (250 A to 1400 A). The authors demonstrate high gain (2 x 107), tight pulse-height distribution (35 percent FWHM), and a spatial resolution of about 35 microns FWHM (full width at half maximum), which is the highest resolution for a wedge-and-strip anode MCP detector flown to date. The background, image linearity, and flat-field performance are discussed. Raw spectra from the rocket flight are also presented.