Imacon High Speed Camera
The Imacon - 468 High Speed Camera, built by Hadland Photonics (figure 1), consists of eight independent among themselves operating high resolution CCD- cameras, which can provide pictures of an optical axis. According to the type of the CCD-Chip, each picture has a dimension of 576*385 pixel and a resolution of 256 intensity steps (figure 2). A great advantage of the Imacon camera is the wide variety of appropriate optics, but for measurements at the Department of Energy Plant Technology developed Flat Flame Burner, in which particles of 50 - 200 µm are analysed, it is necessary to use a telemicroscope, which can reduce the picture width to approximate 10 mm.
Figure 2: Picture sequence of 8 channels
The control of the camera enables free programming of the picture channels in reference to the exposure times as well as the time delay among them, so the system is able to provide picture sequences, which consists of the 8 detail screens of the channels. Since the camera can analyse tiny objects very accurate with a high resolution, there can be gained very important data about the size and the velocity of combusting particles.
Figure 3 shows the structural configuration of the camera system. The incoming light is directed to a prismatic radiation divider by the inner optic of the camera and is split in 8 equal pictures. Afterwards the so resulting picture clippings are redirected towards the picture channels by mirrors, whereupon every channel consists of a picture intensifier, composed of photocathode, MCP (Multi-Channel-Plate) and phosphor screen, a Taper and a CCD-Chip.
