Photoemissive Technology for Emerging Field of Biophotonics and Imaging

Photek AU, Melbourne

Friday 2 September 2005, 3.30PM, Seminar Room AR103, Graduate Research Centre.

Photoemissive technology is the basis of designing and manufacturing vacuum devices for imaging purposes. Most known products are called image intensifiers and this technology has improved year by year due to the high demands of the military night vision market.

In spite of the semiconductor revolution for device development, photoemissive technology has created a new niche market using the profound advantages of much higher sensitivity together with improved temporal and spatial resolution for large area image detection. Photon imaging detectors have a clear application in space and astronomical measurements where it may be required to image objects that are very far distant and therefore very faint. Similar devices are also used in chemical and biological research. Biological cells can be studied by injecting radioactive sources, fluorescent markers, or bioluminescence labels, giving a visual map of the position, size and the movement of the material being studied.
In this presentation I shall try to give some examples of the photonic devices and sensors and how are they designed and developed by Photek for various scientific instruments and space applications. The structure of critical elements, various types of photocathodes, micro-channel plates and phosphor screens will be discussed, mechanical and electronic components will be explained.

Ultrafast gateable photomultipliers, picosecond streak camera tubes, intensified x-ray cameras, multi anode MCP photomultipliers, high-resolution photon counting systems for IR, UV or x-rays are some examples of existing products offered to the market.

Back to 2005 programme