Ultraviolet detector with CMOS-coupled microchannel plates for future space missions

Abstract

The extreme ultraviolet (EUV) telescopes and spectrometers have been used as powerful tools in a variety of space applications, especially in planetary science. Many EUV instruments adopted microchannel plate (MCP) detection systems with resistive anode encoders (RAEs). An RAE is one of the position sensitive anodes suitable for space-based applications because of its low power, mass, and volume coupled with very high reliability. However, this detection system with RAE has limitations of resolution (up to 512 x 512 pixels) and incident count rate (up to ~104 count/sec). Concerning the future space and planetary missions, a new detector with different position sensitive system is required in order to a higher resolution and dynamic range of incident photons. One of the solutions of this issue is using a CMOS imaging sensor. The CMOS imaging sensor with high resolution and high radiation tolerance has been widely used. Here we developed a new CMOS-coupled MCP detector for future UV space and planetary missions. It consists of MCPs followed by a phosphor screen, fiber optic plate, and a windowless CMOS. We manufactured a test model of this detector and performed vibration, thermal cycle, and performance tests. The test sample of FOP-coupled CMOS image sensor achieved the resolving limit of 32 lp/mm and the PSF of 28 um, corresponds to the spatial resolution of 1024 x 1024 pixels. Our results indicate that this new type of UV detector can be widely used for future space applications.