This is an old revision of the document!
VATT Instrumentation and Computers
Current instruments and computing equipment available at the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope are:
VATT CCD Imager - Vatt4k
-
A replacement STA0500A back illuminated 4K CCD, ITL serial number 8301, was installed March 2017, and updated 26 January 2018.
It is similar to the September 2007 one, including its QE.
Pixels: 4096×4096, 15×15 microns
Gain:1.9 e/DN
Full well: ADC limited (65k DN) = ~120,000 electrons unbinned
Noise: ~3.9 electrons
Photon Transfer Curve
Gain Curve
FOV: 12.5 arcmin square
pixel scale: 0.188 arcsec/pixel
wavelength range: 300 - 1000 nm, peak 96% at 450 nm
Preamplifiers added October 2008 inside the dewar. These give faster readout and lower noise.
Galway Ultra Fast Imager - GUFI
This L3CCD system, based on an Andor iXon back-illuminated CCD camera, gives a readout time of only 2ms, extremely high time resolutions of up to 400 images a second (subframed), and very low light level sensitivity.
Field of view on VATT, 3 arcmin with current focal reducer.
On loan from NUI Galway, currently until June 2011.
Consult Richard Boyle for technical details, and see the NUI Galway “Brown Dwarfs and Substellar Objects” group.
VATT CCD Spectrograph - VATTSpec
-
This optical region spectrograph has AR coated refractive optics, with a beam size at its camera of 125 mm, giving …
slit length: 30 arcsec
wavelength range: 360 - 950 nm
spectral coverage: 100 nm at 0.1 nm resolution
spectral resolutions: 0.1, 0.2, and 0.4 nm with 1 arcsec wide slit
detector: back illuminated, low noise CCD STA0520A, with very nice cosmetics.
ITL Serial Number 8228
2688x512 pixels, 15x15 microns
Detector operating temperature -110C
Gain: 1.3 e/DN with setting 10; 2.6 e/DN with setting 5
Full well, both gains: ADC limited (65k DN) = 85,000 or 170,000 electrons
Noise: 3.4 electrons (3.2 in overscan region)
QE Curve
efficiency: determined by Mark Wagner for telescope plus spectrograph
further details are under the Instructions for use of the VATT Spectrograph.
bandpass filters available: S8612 (red blocking); GG-400, GG-475, OG-550 (cut-offs to the blue in nm).
Instrument Interface (a.k.a. the Guider Box)
provides interface to derotator for all the above instruments, as well as offset and slit-viewing guidingwith guide cameras
effective back focal distance, from guide box to focal surface, is 2.000“.
contains two filter wheels, each holding four 3.48” square filters. Adapters to accommodate 2“ and 3” square filters are available.
UBVRI, uvby, Vilnius, Sloan, ECAS, and Order Blocking filters are currently provided.
integrating sphere with continuum and calibration lamps.