In 1981 Steward Observatory developed and put into use an intensified photon-counting Reticon detector system for the Cassegrain spectrograph on the observatory's 2.3 meter telescope. During initial design of the detector, particular emphasis was placed on selecting image intensifier components that would provide the highest possible quantum efficiency in the blue spectral region as well as provide a superior pulse-height distribution, good uniformity of response, high resolution from center to edge, and excellent geometrical stability. The Reticon camera electronics and discriminator electronics are the products of a cooperative project between Steward Observatory and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, and represent a newer technology version of the design pioneered by Shectman and Hiltner. The paper presents a description of the detector components, a summary of laboratory evaluation tests, and a summary of the detector's performance at the telescope. Of special significance is a discussion of the detector's true counting efficiency.

Date Published: 9 January 1984
PDF: 8 pages
Proc. SPIE 0445, Instrumentation in Astronomy V, (9 January 1984); doi: 10.1117/12.966144

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 0445:
Instrumentation in Astronomy V
Alec Boksenberg; David L. Crawford, Editor(s)