NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Back to Results
Maturing CCD Photon-Counting Technology for Space FlightThis paper discusses charge blooming and starlight saturation - two potential technical problems - when using an Electron Multiplying Charge Coupled Device (EMCCD) type detector in a high-contrast instrument for imaging exoplanets. These problems especially affect an interferometric type coronagraph - coronagraphs that do not use a mask to physically block starlight in the science channel of the instrument. These problems are presented using images taken with a commercial Princeton Instrument EMCCD camera in the Goddard Space Flight Center's (GSFC), Interferometric Coronagraph facility. In addition, this paper discusses techniques to overcome such problems. This paper also discusses the development and architecture of a Field Programmable Gate Array and Digital-to-Analog Converter based shaped clock controller for a photon-counting EMCCD camera. The discussion contained here will inform high-contrast imaging groups in their work with EMCCD detectors.
Document ID
20160013321
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
External Source(s)
Authors
Mallik, Udayan
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Lyon, Richard
Petrone, Peter
(Sigma Space Corp. Lanham, MD, United States)
McElwain, Michael
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Benford, Dominic
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Clampin, Mark
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Hicks, Brian
(Maryland Univ. College Park, MD, United States)
Date Acquired
November 8, 2016
Publication Date
September 16, 2015
Publication Information
Publication: Techniques and Instrumentation for Detection of Exoplanets 7
Volume: 9605
Subject Category
Astronomy
Report/Patent Number
SPIE 960515
GSFC-E-DAA-TN33011
Meeting Information
Meeting: SPIE Conference on Techniques and Instrumentation for Detection of Exoplanets
Location: San Diego, CA
Country: United States
Start Date: August 10, 2015
End Date: August 13, 2015
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNG06EO90A
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNG12PL17C
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

Available Downloads

There are no available downloads for this record.
No Preview Available