product overview pco.edge family the most versatile scmos camera portfolio on the market pioneer in scmos image sensor technology

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "product overview pco.edge family the most versatile scmos camera portfolio on the market pioneer in scmos image sensor technology"

Grace Dean
6 years ago
Views:

1 product overview family the most versatile scmos camera portfolio on the market pioneer in scmos image sensor technology

scmos knowledge base scmos General Information PCO scmos cameras are a breakthrough in scientific camera development by combining the advantages of CCD and CMOS technology in a single device.

Full Well Capacity This is the maximum usable amount of electrons which a single pixel can hold before recombination and other non linear effects have to be considered.

000 electrons, which is a prerequisite for the huge dynamic range provided by these sensors.

2 scmos knowledge base scmos General Information PCO scmos cameras are a breakthrough in scientific camera development by combining the advantages of CCD and CMOS technology in a single device. The lowest readout noise, wide dynamic range, and fast frame rates all at high resolution are achieved at the same time with the very compact camera head. Full Well Capacity This is the maximum usable amount of electrons which a single pixel can hold before recombination and other non linear effects have to be considered. In relation to their pixel size of 6.5 µm, scmos pixels excel with a surprisingly high full well capacity of electrons, which is a prerequisite for the huge dynamic range provided by these sensors. Pixel Size In a popular misconception it is assumed that the larger the pixel size the better the sensitivity. However it is pixel architecture and electronic layout which have a crucial influence on the pixel sensitivity. The unique design of the square 6.5 µm scmos pixel allows for very high full well capacity, a large light sensitive area; and an extremely low readout noise. Furthermore the 6.5 µm pixel size has proven in the past the highest versatility in adapting to the resolution requirements of most applications, like special microscopy setups. Illustration of two image sensors within the image circle of the same lens. Image sensor [1] has pixels with the quarter size area of the pixels of sensor [2]. Dynamic Range The contrast between the brightest and the weakest measurable light signal in the same image defines the intra-scene dynamic range of a sensor. Whereas the full well capacity sets the upper limit for the brightest signal, it is effectively the readout noise which sets the lower detection limit. With the scmos values of electrons full well and around 1 electron rms readout noise, signal-to-noise can range from , depending on camera choice. Quantum Efficiency (QE) wavelength The QE value of a sensor indicates the percentage of incoming photons generating a photo electron. An ideal sensor would achieve 100% QE. All our pco. edge series cameras are based on two similar scmos sensor designs exceeding 60% or even 70% QE. In addition the 3.1 and 5.5 models are available as color sensor versions using high quality RGB Bayer filters. The same extract of a larger image of neurons with a fluorescent marker for Calcium with different scaling to the 8 bit world: For all evaluations, it has been the same image! It is important that high dynamic images are properly displayed. Binning In general, no conventional physical binning at the charge carrier level (as on CCDs) is possible with CMOS image sensors because the charge to voltage conversion already happens on each individual pixel. Summing up the voltage values of neighboring pixels means also summing up the noise attributed by that conversion. Although doing so increases the SNR, the effect is less advantageous than summing up the primary charge carrier packages of neighboring CCD pixels. Scientific CMOS cameras from PCO offer as standard binning modes all combinations from H1xV1 to H4xV4.

scmos knowledge base Dark Signal Non-Uniformity (DSNU) PCO cameras deliver a very homogeneous and stable dark image which is beneficial especially in low light applications.

DSNU values measured for all of the cameras according to EMVA 1288 standards are well below 1 e- rms.

3 scmos knowledge base Dark Signal Non-Uniformity (DSNU) PCO cameras deliver a very homogeneous and stable dark image which is beneficial especially in low light applications. DSNU is defined as the spatial signal variation between pixels without illumination. One of the main causes for these variations are slight differences between the individual column amplifiers. DSNU values measured for all of the cameras according to EMVA 1288 standards are well below 1 e- rms. Photon Response Non-Uniformity (PRNU) Differences in the behavior of the column amplifiers affect not only the dark image but also the illuminated image, e.g. by column to column variation of the amplifier gain. A quantitative measure for pixel to pixel variations caused by these variations is the PRNU value as defined in EMVA 1288 standard. PRNU values measured for all scmos cameras are below 0.5%, indicating that neighboring pixel differ less than 0.5% in their reaction to the same light signal. Linearity For most measurement applications it is very convenient to have a linear response of the output signal to changes in light input. Deviations from such a linear behavior are addressed as non-linearity. All pco. edge cameras employ the necessary electronic components and firmware algorithms to correct the non-linear behavior in real time providing for linearity > 99%. pioneer in scmos image sensor technology

on the cutting ed g e Optimized Microscopy & Scanning Readout Modes The cameras offer a variety of readout modes which are optimized for advanced microscopy imaging and scanning techniques like

An exposure area (between the orange bars, e.g. five lines) can be user defined. It is possible for the user to select the number of lines and the per line. Minimum line time value is 27.

5 Camera Link 5.5 USB 4.2 Camera Link 4.2 USB 3.1 USB 4.2 LT USB gold 5.5 USB gold 4.

Shutter If you want to capture fast moving objects, using a rolling shutter can cause distortions, e.g. motion-blur.

If this phenomenon disturbs your image analysis, using the global shutter mode is the solution.

Then after the exposure and readout, the dark image is subtracted from the real exposed image to perform an correlated double sampling, which reduces the inherent noise. max.

164 fps 170 fps 134 fps 170 fps lowest readout noise (med) peak quantum efficiency dynamic range rolling shutter global reset global shutter cooling 1.1 e- 1.0 e- 0.

5 db 33000 : 1 90.4 db 27000 : 1 88.6 db 30000 : 1 89.

5 C water 0 C air 0 C water +5 C air + 5 C water 0 C air 0 C water + 5 C air +10 C air -30 C water -15 C air deep cooled -30 C water -15 C air deep cooled Water-Cooling A high-grade water-cooling

4 on the cutting ed g e Optimized Microscopy & Scanning Readout Modes The cameras offer a variety of readout modes which are optimized for advanced microscopy imaging and scanning techniques like microscopy, selective plane imaging microscopy (SPIM), structured illumination microscopy (SIM), localization microscopy (GSD, PALM STORM) and spinning disk confocal microscopy. An exposure area (between the orange bars, e.g. five lines) can be user defined. It is possible for the user to select the number of lines and the per line. Minimum line time value is 27.6 µs and it is selectable up to 100 ms. This user-defined capability makes it possible to synchronize the cameras with a microscope that requires this method of camera exposure timing. scmos 5.5 Camera Link 5.5 USB 4.2 Camera Link 4.2 USB 3.1 USB 4.2 LT USB gold 5.5 USB gold 4.2 USB resolution 2560 x x x x x x x x 2048 sensor CIS 2521 CIS 2521 CIS 2020 CIS 2020 CIS 2521 CIS 2020 CIS 2521 CIS 2020 Global Shutter If you want to capture fast moving objects, using a rolling shutter can cause distortions, e.g. motion-blur. This is because the line-by-line exposure leads to small differences as the shutter rolls through the image. If this phenomenon disturbs your image analysis, using the global shutter mode is the solution. Thereby, the exposure starts after a reset of all charge collecting diffusion nodes in all pixels and a dark image is read out. Then after the exposure and readout, the dark image is subtracted from the real exposed image to perform an correlated double sampling, which reduces the inherent noise. max. frame full resolution 100 fps 30 fps 100 fps 40 fps 50 fps 40 fps 30 fps 40 fps 1280 x fps 63 fps 200 fps 80 fps 77 fps 80 fps 63 fps 80 fps 640 x fps 134 fps 426 fps 170 fps 164 fps 170 fps 134 fps 170 fps lowest readout noise (med) peak quantum efficiency dynamic range rolling shutter global reset global shutter cooling 1.1 e- 1.0 e- 0.9 e- 0.8 e- 1.1 e- 0.8 e- 1.0 e- 0.8 e- >60 % >60 % >70 % >70 % >60 % >70 % >60 % >70 % : db : db : db : db : db 500µs - 2s 500µs - 2s 100µs - 10s 100µs - 20s 500µs - 2s 100µs - 10s 500µs - 10s 100µs - 60s 10µs - 2s 30µs - 2s 30µs - 2s 30µs - 2s 30µs - 2s 10µs ms 20µs - 100ms 20µs - 100ms +5 C air + 5 C water 0 C air 0 C water +5 C air + 5 C water 0 C air 0 C water + 5 C air +10 C air -30 C water -15 C air deep cooled -30 C water -15 C air deep cooled Water-Cooling A high-grade water-cooling system is available providing vibration-free operation with an extremely stabilized sensor temperature and fast cooling operation. If you use more than one camera, PCO s powerful water cooler can easily operate four cameras. Furthermore, operation with fan cooling is still possible without the water cooled component. Deep-Cooling Two special deep-cooled cameras are available: gold 4.2 and 5.5. Both provide cooling down of the scmos sensor to -30 C absolute for extraordinary long s with very low dark current noise. The sensor compartments of the gold-series are manufactured as high-vacuum technology chamber and along with the massive gold-plated heat sink, PCO has created an outstanding scmos-camera system. Small Form Factor The cameras are ultra-compact and light weight with standard dimensions of just 103 x 76 x 70 mm and weight of 700 grams (Camera Link version). Such a small form factor allows easy-fitting in different experimental setups and therefore makes the to a universal multi-use scientific tool. interface Camera Link USB 3.0 Camera Link USB 3.0 USB 3.0 USB 3.0 USB 3.0 USB 3.0 For detailed data sheets please visit our website sensor CIS 2521 sensor CIS 2521 sensor CIS 2020 color monochrome monochrome pco.

find find us us europe PCO AG Donaupark 11 93309 Kelheim, Germany fon +49 (0)9441 2005 50 fax +49 (0)9441 2005 20 info@pco.de www.pco.de america PCO-TECH Inc.

5 find find us us europe PCO AG Donaupark Kelheim, Germany fon +49 (0) fax +49 (0) america PCO-TECH Inc Metroplex Drive Romulus, Michigan 48174, USA fon +1 (248) fax +1 (248) asia PCO Imaging Asia Pte. 3 Temasek Ave Centennial Tower, Level 34 Singapore, fon fax info@pco-imaging.de subject to changes without prior notice I PCO AG, Kelheim pco_scmos overview v1.04

pco.edge 4.2 LT 0.8 electrons 2048 x 2048 pixel 40 fps : 1 > 70 % pco. low noise high resolution high speed high dynamic range

pco.edge 4.2 LT 0.8 electrons 2048 x 2048 pixel 40 fps : 1 > 70 % pco. low noise high resolution high speed high dynamic range edge 4.2 LT scientific CMOS camera high resolution 2048 x 2048 pixel low noise 0.8 electrons USB 3.0 small form factor high dynamic range 36 000 : 1 high speed 40 fps high quantum efficiency > 70 % edge