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Fiber Optic Capabilities
A lens is commonly used to couple light from an emitting source to the
CCD. Often, significant gains in the amount of light collected from the
source can be achieved by directly coupling the source to the CCD using
an image-preserving fiber optic taper. Depending on the amount of demagnification,
the gain in light collected can exceed 20x that of an f/1.2 lens. Fiber
optics are commonly used to couple light from x-ray or neutron scintillator
screens, chemiluminescent markers, image intensifiers, or streak tubes.
Patented
Fiber Bonding Process
Bonding a large piece of fiber optic glass to a fragile CCD sensor is
not easily done. Because light exits the fiber with a cone angle approaching
180 degrees, mounting the fiber as close as possible to the CCD is essential.
Only Photometrics' patented fiber bonding process (US Patent 5,134,680)
has succeeded in obtaining optimal fiber optic-coupled CCD performance.
This process directly bonds the fiber to the CCD without intermediate oil
layers or the use of intermediate fiber stubs that introduce losses in
spatial resolution and transmission efficiency.
Custom Configurations
A number of Photometrics camera heads are available with a range of
CCDs and fiber optic tapers. Standard combinations include CCDs ranging
from 512x512 pixels to 2048x2048 pixels combined with fibers with magnification
ratios varying from 1:1 to 3:1. Larger fiber reduction ratios have been
built at customers' request. Photometrics also builds fiber optic mosaics
that combine several fibers and CCDs into a single imaging surface. Photometrics
uses cutting-edge fiber optic technology, incorporating low-thorium glass
and the largest fiber optic tapers available.
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