CCCP: A CCD Controller for Counting Photons

TL;DR

CCCP is a novel CCD controller designed to enable efficient photon counting by reducing clock-induced charges, optimized for EMCCDs at high pixel rates, with deployment plans in major telescopes.

Contribution

The paper introduces a new clocking architecture for CCD controllers that significantly reduces noise, enabling effective photon counting at high speeds.

Findings

Reduced clock-induced charges to 0.001-0.0018 electrons per pixel per frame.

Optimized for EMCCDs at up to 20MHz pixel rate.

Planned deployment on ESO NTT and SOAR telescopes.

Abstract

CCCP, a CCD Controller for Counting Photons, is presented. This new controller uses a totally new clocking architecture and allows to drive the CCD in a novel way. Its design is optimized for the driving of EMCCDs at up to 20MHz of pixel rate and fast vertical transfer. Using this controller, the dominant source of noise of EMCCDs at low flux level and high frame rate, the Clock Induced Charges, were reduced to 0.001 - 0.0018 electron/pixel/frame (depending of the electron multiplying gain), making efficient photon counting possible. CCCP will be deployed in 2009 on the ESO NTT through the 3D-NTT1 project and on the SOAR through the BTFI project.