Characteristics of Photonis 6-um pore microchannel plates

James F. Pearson; Adam N. Brunton; Adrian P. Martin; George W. Fraser; John Ernest Lees; J.-P. Boutot; R. Fairbend; Sven Olof Flyckt

doi:10.1117/12.409114

13 December 2000 Characteristics of Photonis 6-um pore microchannel plates

James F. Pearson, Adam N. Brunton, Adrian P. Martin, George W. Fraser, John Ernest Lees, J.-P. Boutot, R. Fairbend, Sven Olof Flyckt

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 4140, X-Ray and Gamma-Ray Instrumentation for Astronomy XI; (2000) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.409114
Event: International Symposium on Optical Science and Technology, 2000, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

We report on the performance of 6 micrometer pore diameter Microchannel Plates (MCPs) fabricated in 50 X 50 mm² format, from both standard and radio-isotope free low noise glass, by Photonis SAS for a European Space Agency Technology Research Program. We compare them to MCPs manufactured by Photonis (the former Philips Photonics) for the High Resolution Camera (HRC) on NASA's Chandra X-ray observatory. The new MCPs represent a significant advance in MCP technology, having a much larger area than previously reported 6 micrometer plates, and demonstrating low noise 6 micrometer technology for the first time. The 6 micrometer plates are shown to be, mechanically, exceptionally well made with a defect density reduced by a factor of 2 - 5 compared to samples from the HRC flight blocks. They exhibit excellent gain and the expected 0.28 keV (Carbon K) X-ray quantum efficiency. The low noise plates have a very uniform response to X-rays but the standard glass MCPs do show inhomogeneity on both the global and multifiber scales.

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James F. Pearson, Adam N. Brunton, Adrian P. Martin, George W. Fraser, John Ernest Lees, J.-P. Boutot, R. Fairbend, and Sven Olof Flyckt "Characteristics of Photonis 6-um pore microchannel plates", Proc. SPIE 4140, X-Ray and Gamma-Ray Instrumentation for Astronomy XI, (13 December 2000); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.409114

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