Ascent Features :

Ascent is the latest imaging technology from Apogee Instruments. Many of the features are built on the highly successful Alta series. Ascent is the perfect choice for applications requiring high speed, low cost and a compact enclosure.

• USB2.0 High Speed Serial Interface

• A wide range of CCD arrays supported

• Compact Thin Lightweight Enclosure - 22 oz, 1.2" thick with 0.320 BFD

• Cooling up to 40C below ambient with liquid or fan assist, 30C without.

• Hermetically sealed and argon filled CCD chamber with lifetime warranty.

• SDRAM in camera head for local image storage and fast sequences

• 16 bit Digitization, Up to 10Mhz, Single or 20Mhz Dual amplifier readout

• Single +6V supply

• Advanced triggering, Ext. Shutter and Readout controls

• Programmable status indicator LEDs

• Binning to 4095 Vertical x 4 Horizontal, independently selectable

• <1uS separation between back-to-back images (Interline CCDs only)

• No external control units or plug-in cards

• Internal or External shuttering

• Field upgradeable firmware

• Precision TDI readout, Kinetics Mode with Sync output signals

• Progressive Scan and Continuous Imaging modes

• Internal relays for auto guider operation and telescope mount control

• Compatibility with Alta software drivers

• Supported by all software currently supporting Alta and additional applications

• Attachable filter wheel accessory and flexible peripheral mounting options

• Compatible with Optec IFW and Apogee FW50 filter wheels

• 2 year warranty on camera, lifetime warranty on CCD chamber seal

• Custom fitted Carry case (optional).

High Performance Cooled CCD Camera Systems
Apogee Instruments' new Ascent Series cooled cameras are available with a wide variety of CCDs for diverse applications in a wide range of sciences. Ascent is remarkably fast, with a small enclosure designed for integration into tight spaces. Combined with its low cost, Ascent is unbeatable in applications which do not require the lower noise or higher cooling of the Alta series.

How to Choose?
Back-illuminated CCDs are typically used for very low light applications due to their high quantum efficiency (QE). Kodak micro-lensed Blue Plus CCDs (ME suffix on the part number) also have high peak QE, but much less overall QE than the back-illuminated CCDs. The UV enhanced versions of the back-illuminated CCDs have the highest QE in the UV. Frame transfer CCDs and interline transfer CCDs can read out at higher frame rates because they do not require electromechanical shutters. Large pixel CCDs have the highest dynamic range, but generally are not suitable for microscopy.

Need advice? Please contact us about your specific needs.

Model	CCD	Format	Pixel	Full Well
Kodak Interline CCDs Note: Monochrome and Color versions supported. Shutters and Software Optional
A340	KAI-0340	640 x 480	7.4u	40Ke-
A2000	KAI-2020	1600 x 1200	7.4u	40Ke-
A4000	KAI-4021	2048 x 2048	7.4u	40Ke-
A11000	KAI-11002	4008 x 2672	9.0u	60Ke-
A16000	KAI-16000	4872 x 3248	7.4u	30Ke-
Kodak Full Frame CCDs with internal shutters Note: All grades and types (E, ME and L) supported. A105 and A8300 is color only.
A1	KAF-0402ME	768 x 512	9.0u	100Ke-
A2	KAF-1603E/ME	1536 x 1024	9.0u	100Ke-
A9	KAF-6303E	3088 x 2056	9.0u	100Ke-
A32	KAF-3200E/ME	2184 x 1472	6.8u	50Ke-
A260	KAF-0261E	512 x 512	20u	200Ke-
A8300	KAF-8300E/CE	3326 x 2504	5.4u	25Ke-
A105C	KAF-10500	3970 x 2546	6.8u	60Ke-
Hamamatsu Back Illuminated Spectroscopy Format CCDs Note: Unshuttered systems for spectroscopy/oem use.
A98	S9840	2048 x 14	14u	75Ke-
A1007	S10141-1007	1024 x 122	12u	75Ke-
A1008	S10141-1008	1024 x 250	12u	75Ke-
A1009	S10141-1009	1024 x 506	12u	75Ke-
A1107	S10141-1107	2048 x 122	12u	75Ke-
A1108	S10141-1108	2048 x 250	12u	75Ke-
A1109	S10141-1109	2048 x 506	12u	75Ke-
EMCCD Interline Frame Transfer
EM247	TC247	680 x 500	10u	28Ke- g=1)
Sony Interline
A285	ICX285AL	1360 x 1024	6.45	18Ke-

Ascent Series Models

Apogee Ascent cameras are designed for demanding scientific applications. High sensitivity sensors detect very weak signals that cannot be seen by the human eye or standard CCD cameras. The direct USB 2.0 link between camera and computer allows easy installation, portability and fast data transfer rate. High resolution enables detection of very fine detail across a wide field of view. The 6.8 - 7.4 micron pixels in some of these cameras are the ideal balance between optical sampling and dynamic range for microscopy. Used with the optional CRI liquid crystal tunable filters, the cameras acquire stunning publication quality color images. All cameras come with their own easy to use software. An ActiveX software development kit and Linux drivers are available for easy integration into custom applications.

A Decade of Improvements
There are many technological jumps designed into the Ascents. But other aspects of the technology represent refinement upon refinement over more than a decade. Our cooling technology, for example, is advanced, not just because of what it is, but because of what it isn't. We've made mistakes--and survived to apply the lessons learned to improving the product and the company as a whole. We continue to refine not just our electronics and our mechanical designs, but also our procedures, our documentation, our customer recordkeeping. It's quite an accomplishment to manufacture and sell thousands and thousands of cameras, but unless they are robust, the result is a customer service nightmare. In our effort to improve our process, we�ve achieved the following benchmarks:

• FCC compliance

• CE compliance

• ROHS compliance

• ISO-9000 compliance (in process)

ASCENT CCD Camera Photos :

Front Large CCD Sensor

Mounted Filter Wheel

Interface

Mounted Chiller

With Camera Lens

With 48mm Nose and Filter Wheel

Liquid Chiller

Specification :

CCD	KAI-0340
Array Size (pixels)	648 x 484
Pixel Size	7.4 x 7.4 microns
Imaging Area	4.8 x 3.6 mm (17.2 mm2)
Imaging Diagonal	6 mm
Video Imager Size	0.37"
Linear Full Well (typical)	40K electrons
Dynamic Range	74 dB
QE at 400 nm	47%
Peak QE (480 nm)	56%
Anti-blooming (nominal)	300X
Camera System Performance
PC Interface	USB 2.0
USB2 Cable	Std.: 5m. Extensions: 5 meters between hubs; 5 hubs maximum (max. total of 30m) Wide variety of extenders available, including fiber optics to 10 km.
Digital Resolution	16 bits at up to 10 Mpixels/sec per channel (A340S = single channel; A340D = dual channel)
System Noise (typical)	15 e- RMS at 1.5 MHz
Pixel Binning	1 x 1 to 4 x 484 on-chip
Exposure Time	Minimum 100 microseconds (no vane shutter); max.183 minutes
Image Sequencing	1 to 65535 image sequences under software control
Frame Sizes	Full frame, subframe, focus mode
Cooling (typical)	Thermoelectric cooler. Maximum forced air cooling 40°C below ambient temperature.
Dark Current (typical)	Photodiode: 0.6 e-/pixel/sec. Storage diode: 6 e-/pixel/sec. (-15°C)
Temperature Stability	± 0.1°C
Camera Head Size	Aluminum. 3.2" x 5.7" x 1.3" (8.1 x 14.5 x 3.3 cm) Weight: 1.4 lb. (0.65 kg)
Mounting	1.5' x 2.5"bolt pattern, 6-32 thread. Optional C-mount (1"32 tpi thread), Nikon F-mount, or 2"slip-fit adapters.
Back Focal Distance	Standard: 0.32" (0.81 cm). [optical]
Operating Environment	-30°C to 35°C. Relative humidity: 10 to 90% non-condensing.
Op.Sys.Support	Windows, Linux, Mac OSX
Power	20W maximum power with internal shutter open and cooling maximum. AC/DC "brick"supply with int"l AC input plug (100-240V, 50-60 Hz). Alternate 6V input from user's source.
Shutter	Standard: Electronic. Optional internal vane or external electromechanical shutter.
Remote Triggering	LVTTL input allows exposure to start within 25 microseconds of rising edge of trigger

CCD Sensitivity :

Specification :

CCD	KAI-4021
Array Size (pixels)	2048 x 2048
Pixel Size	7.4 x 7.4 microns
Imaging Area	15.2 x 15.2 mm (230 mm2)
Imaging Diagonal	21.4 mm
Video Imager Size	1.34"
Linear Full Well (typical)	40K electrons
Dynamic Range	77 dB
QE at 400 nm	45%
Peak QE (500 nm)	55%
Anti-blooming (nominal)	300X
Camera System Performance
PC Interface	USB 2.0
USB2 Cable	Std.: 5m. Extensions: 5 meters between hubs; 5 hubs maximum (max. total of 30m) Wide variety of extenders available, including fiber optics to 10 km.
Digital Resolution	16 bits at up to 10 Mpixels/sec per each of two channels
System Noise (typical)	15 e- RMS at 1.5 MHz
Pixel Binning	1 x 1 to 4 x 2048 on-chip
Exposure Time	Minimum 100 microseconds (no vane shutter); max.183 minutes
Image Sequencing	1 to 65535 image sequences under software control
Frame Sizes	Full frame, subframe, focus mode
Cooling (typical)	Thermoelectric cooler. Maximum forced air cooling 40°C below ambient temperature.
Dark Current (typical)	Photodiode: 0.6 e-/pixel/sec. Storage diode: 6 e-/pixel/sec. (-15°C)
Temperature Stability	± 0.1°C
Camera Head Size	Aluminum. 3.2" x 5.7" x 1.3" (8.1 x 14.5 x 3.3 cm) Weight: 1.4 lb. (0.65 kg)
Mounting	1.5" x 2.5" bolt pattern, 6-32 thread. Optional C-mount (1" 32 tpi thread), Nikon F-mount, or 2" slip-fit adapters.
Back Focal Distance	Standard: 0.32� (0.81 cm). [optical]
Operating Environment	-30°C to 35°C. Relative humidity: 10 to 90% non-condensing.
Op.Sys.Support	Windows, Linux, Mac OSX
Power	20W maximum power with internal shutter open and cooling maximum. AC/DC "brick" supply with int"l AC input plug (100-240V, 50-60 Hz). Alternate 6V input from user's source.
Shutter	Standard: Electronic Optional internal vane or external electromechanical shutter.
Remote Triggering	LVTTL input allows exposure to start within 25 microseconds of rising edge of trigger

CCD Sensitivity :

Model: Ascent A16000

Description :

The Ascent A16000 has a 16-megapixel interline transfer sensor with high quantum efficiency. The camera is available with a monochrome sensor (M version) or color sensor with a Bayer mosaic. Low noise and small pixels are ideal for OEM applications, biological sciences, and fundus imaging.

Specification :

CCD	KAI-16000
Array Size (pixels)	4872 x 3248
Pixel Size	7.4 x 7.4 microns
Imaging Area	36 x 24 mm (866.5 mm2)
Imaging Diagonal	43.3 mm
Video Imager Size	2.7"
Linear Full Well (typical)	30K electrons
Dynamic Range	60 dB
QE at 400 nm	38%
Peak QE (460 nm)	47%
Anti-blooming (nominal)	300X
Camera System Performance
PC Interface	USB 2.0
USB2 Cable	Std.: 5m. Extensions: 5 meters between hubs; 5 hubs maximum (max. total of 30m) Wide variety of extenders available, including fiber optics to 10 km.
Digital Resolution	16 bits at up to 10 MHz per each of two channels (programmable speeds)
System Noise (typical)	15 e- RMS at 1.5 MHz
Pixel Binning	1 x 1 to 4 x 3248 on-chip
Exposure Time	Minimum 100 microseconds (no vane shutter); max.183 minutes
Image Sequencing	1 to 65535 image sequences under software control
Frame Sizes	Full frame, subframe, focus mode
Cooling (typical)	Thermoelectric cooler. Maximum forced air cooling 30°C below ambient temperature.
Dark Current (typical)	Photodiode: 1 e-/pixel/sec. Storage diode: 10 e-/pixel/sec. (-10°C)
Temperature Stability	± 0.1°C
Camera Head Size	Aluminum. 3.2" x 5.7" x 1.3" (8.1 x 14.5 x 3.3 cm) Weight: 1.4 lb. (0.65 kg)
Mounting	1.5" x 2.5" bolt pattern, 6-32 thread. Optional Nikon F-mount or 2" slip-fit adapters.
Back Focal Distance	Standard: 0.32" (0.81 cm). [optical]
Operating Environment	-30°C to 35°C. Relative humidity: 10 to 90% non-condensing.
Op.Sys.Support	Windows, Linux, Mac OSX
Power	20W maximum power with internal shutter open and cooling maximum. AC/DC �brick� supply with int"l AC input plug (100-240V, 50-60 Hz). Alternate 6V input from user's source.
Shutter	Standard: Electronic. Optional external electromechanical shutter.
Remote Triggering	LVTTL input allows exposure to start within 25 microseconds of rising edge of trigger

CCD Sensitivity :