What is a Saturation?

Apr 25, 2017 | Detectors, Glossary of Spectroscopy Terms

Saturation is what happens when a pixel generates too many electrons. After a pixel exceeds its pixel well depth, the signal from the pixel stops increasing with more photons. The stored electrons can even start “leaking” into neighboring pixels and distorting the...

What is a Pixel?

Apr 25, 2017 | Detectors, Glossary of Spectroscopy Terms

A pixel, also called an element in PDAs, is an individual semiconductor in a larger array of many semiconductors used in electronic detectors such as CCDs and PDAs. When using detectors for 2D imaging, these semiconductors correspond directly to the pixels in the...

What is a Photodiode?

Apr 25, 2017 | Detectors, Glossary of Spectroscopy Terms

A photodiode is a device that turns photons into current. When a photon strikes a photodiode, it generates an electron. The electron then gets swept away down an electronic circuit. This generates a current which can be measured.

What is a Charge-Coupled Device (CCD)?

Apr 25, 2017 | Detectors, Glossary of Spectroscopy Terms

A charged-coupled device (CCD) is a type of electronic detector that is widely used for detection in the visible region. When an ultraviolet coating is added, CCDs are also useful for the UV region. The CCD is made up of an array of rectangular capacitors, called...

What is a Photodiode Array (PDA)?

Apr 25, 2017 | Detectors, Glossary of Spectroscopy Terms

A photodiode array (PDA) is just many photodiodes stacked together. The individual photodiodes are called pixels or elements. PDAs are particularly useful because they can measure photons in the NIR region, which a CCD cannot. The PDAs used in StellarNet’s NIR...

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