Megapixel imaging camera for expanded H{sup {minus}} beam measurements

A charge coupled device (CCD) imaging camera system has been developed as part of the Ground Test Accelerator project at the Los Alamos National Laboratory to measure the properties of a large diameter, neutral particle beam. The camera is designed to operate in the accelerator vacuum system for extended periods of time. It would normally be cooled to reduce dark current. The CCD contains 1024 {times} 1024 pixels with pixel size of 19 {times} 19 {mu}m{sup 2} and with four phase parallel clocking and two phase serial clocking. The serial clock rate is 2.5{times}10{sup 5} pixels per second. Clock sequence and timing are controlled by an external logic-word generator. The DC bias voltages are likewise located externally. The camera contains circuitry to generate the analog clocks for the CCD and also contains the output video signal amplifier. Reset switching noise is removed by an external signal processor that employs delay elements to provide noise suppression by the method of double-correlated sampling. The video signal is digitized to 12 bits in an analog to digital converter (ADC) module controlled by a central processor module. Both modules are located in a VME-type computer crate that communicates via ethernet with a separate workstation where overall control is exercised and image processing occurs. Under cooled conditions the camera shows good linearity with dynamic range of 2000 and with dark noise fluctuations of about {plus_minus}1/2 ADC count. Full well capacity is about 5{times}10{sup 5} electron charges