First Light (Spectroscopy) - Princeton Instruments PhotonMAX System Manual

Chapter 5

First Light (Spectroscopy)

The following paragraphs provide step-by-step instructions for operating PhotonMAX in
a spectroscopy setup for the first time. The intent of this simple procedure is to help you
gain basic familiarity with the operation of your system and to show that it is functioning
properly. Once basic familiarity has been established, then operation with other operating
configurations, ones with more complex timing modes, can be performed. An underlying
assumption for the procedure is that the camera is to be operated with a spectrograph
(such as an Acton SpectraPro
light source, such as a mercury pen-ray lamp, should be mounted in front of the entrance
slit of the spectrograph. Any light source with line output can be used. Standard
fluorescent overhead lamps have good calibration lines as well. If there are no "line"
sources available, it is possible to use a broadband source such as tungsten for the
alignment. If this is the case, use a wavelength setting of 0.0 nm for alignment purposes.
Caution
Overexposure Protection: Cameras that are exposed to room light or other
continuous light sources will quickly become saturated. This most often occurs when
operating without a shutter. If the camera is mounted to a spectrograph, close the entrance
slit of the spectrograph to reduce the incident light.
Assumptions
The following procedure assumes that
1. You have already set up your system in accordance with the instructions in
2. You have read the previous sections of this chapter.
3. You are familiar with the application software.
4. The system is being operated in spectroscopy mode.
Getting Started
1. Set the spectrometer entrance slit width to minimum (10 µm if possible).
2. Mount the camera to the spectrometer exit port.
3. Power ON the (the power switch is on the back of the camera).
4. Turn on the computer power.
5. Start the application software.
Setting the Parameters
Note: The following procedure is based on WinSpec/32: you will need to modify it
if you are using a different application. Basic familiarity with the WinSpec/32
software is assumed. If this is not the case, you may want to review the software
manual or have it available while performing this procedure.
Set the software parameters as follows:
™
previous chapters.
Controller/Camera tab page (Setup|Hardware): These parameters should
be set automatically to the proper values for your system.
•
Use PVCAM: Verify that this box is checked.
Note: This check box is not present on software versions 2.5.19.6 and
higher.
Operation
2356) on which it has been properly installed. A suitable
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