Princeton Instruments PI-MAX2 System - Turning on System and Setting Up Software; Configuring Software for Shutter Mode

Chapter 4 First Light 49
Turning on the System and Setting Up the Software
1. Turn on the ST-133.
Note: The PI-MAX overload alarm may sound briefly and then stop. This is normal
and is not a cause for concern. However, if the alarm sounds continuously, even with
no light entering the spectrograph, something is wrong. Turn off the power and
contact the factory for guidance.
2. Turn on the computer power.
3. Start the WinX application software (WinView/32 or WinSpec/32 as appropriate).
Configuring the Software for Shutter Mode Operation
Setup menu
1. Select Hardware.
2. On the Controller/Camera tab page, make the following settings.
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Use PVCAM: (WinX Versions 2.5.19.0 and earlier) If you are using the
USB 2.0 interface, verify that the box is checked.
Controller Type: ST133 for standard PI-MAX or ST-133-5 MHz for PI-MAX2
Version: 3 or higher
Camera Type: TH 512 × 512 7895, Marconi (EEV) 256 × 1024 (6 ph) CCD 30-11,
Kodak 1024 x 1024, Marconi 1024 x 1024 CCD 47-10, or RS 1340 × 1300 CCD
36-40 whichever array is installed in the camera.
Shutter Type: Electronic
Readout Mode: Full Frame (or Interline for Kodak 1024 x 1024)
LOGIC OUT Output: Shutter
User Defined Chip: not checked
User Defined Timing: not checked
RS170 Type: NTSC or PAL, according to your video monitor type.
Note: RS170 is not currently supported under USB 2.0 or by PI-MAX2 cameras.
3. On the Cleans/Skips tab page, make the following settings.
Number of Cleans: 1
Number of Strips per Clean: 4
Minimum Block Size: 16
Number of Blocks: 32
Note: Incorporating Cleans minimizes the dark current. However, if an External
Sync occurs while a Clean is in progress, the Clean will go to completion before the
experiment begins, introducing jitter that can be as large as one complete Clean
cycle. If the experiment can tolerate this level of jitter, then operation with Cleans = 1
is recommended. On the other hand, if the experiment requires that jitter be reduced
to an absolute minimum, then Cleans should be set to “0.” Note that the effect of
changing the Cleans setting will only be visible if operating in the Fast mode as
selected on the Experiment Setup Timing tab page.
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Instead of selecting parameters individually, another option is to open the Setup menu, select
Load Factory Defaults and then From Controller to load the values stored in the
Controller.