| Experiment Guide |
| 1. Read Chromey Chapters 7,8,9 |
| 2. Detectors |
| 3. The CCD-1 |
| 4. The CCD-2 |
| 5. CCDSoft 5 Quick Start Guide |
| 6. CCD Imaging Lab Setup |
| Related Material |
| 1. Faint Imaging |
| 2. Kodak KAF-0261E CCD |
| 3. ST-9XE Manual |
| 4. ST-9XE Specs |
| 5. ST-9XE Dimensions |
| Useful Links |
| 1. How It's Made: CCD's |
| 2. 2009 Nobel Prize |
| 3. Apogee U6 clocking voltages |
Overview
The purpose of this lab is to introduce you to the operation of the CCD imager and its image processing. You will learn about the physics of the CCD, its electrical clocking, and signal processing. You will then individually operate a CCD imaging setup similar to what you will be using at the telescope, including the same control software package. You will obtain images of a galaxy, bias (zero exposure) frames, dark (shutter closed) frames, as well as your "object" frame of the galaxy. You will also explore the effects of radioactivity on the CCD. After exploring these images and their pixel distributions with the open software ds9, you will use Python programs of your own to process and analyze these data, correcting for the defects in the electronics clocking and variations in the pixel response. You must obtain a B or higher grade grade for this lab before using the telescope.
