US 4,794,296 AGranted

Charge transfer signal processor

AssigneeOptron System, Inc.

InventorsCardinal Warde, Robert F. Dillon

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Abstract

The disclosed charge transfer signal processor includes a vacuum housing having an input face and a output face, a 2-D electromagnetic input means cooperative with said input face for providing a 2-D input electronic charge signal within the vacuum housing, transfer means for imaging the 2-D input electronic charge signal in a region of the vacuum housing proximate the vacuum housing output face, and charge feedthrough means coupled to the vacuum housing output face for transferring the imaged 2-D electronic charge signal externally to the vacuum housing. In one embodiment, the charge transfer signal processor is operable as a Gen-I charge transfer amplifier. In another embodiment, a microchannel plate assembly is d This invention was made with Government support under Contract F19628-84-C-0048 awarded by the Department of the Air Force. The government has certain rights in the invention.

Claims62

Dependent claims

A charge transfer signal processor, comprising:

vacuum housing means defining longitudinally spaced and confronting two-dimensional input and output external ports for providing an evacuated region between the external input and output ports;
input electromagnetic signal means coupled to said vacuum housing means for writing an input electromagnetic signal defining a two-dimensional (the 2-D) spacially-varying input intensity distribution into the evacuated region as a selectable two-dimensional spacially-varying electronic charge intensity distribution;
imaging means for transporting said selectable two-dimensional spacially-varying electronic charge intensity distribution of said input electromagnetic signal proximate to said output port;
and
two-dimensional electronic charge collecting and electrically conductive feedthrough means vacuum-mounted at said external output port to said vacuum housing means and cooperative with said imaging means for receiving said two-dimensional electronic charge intensity distribution proximate said output port and electrically transferring it externally of said vacuum housing means;
said two-dimensional electronic charge collecting said electrically conducting feedthrough means including a preselected high resolution 2-D array of electrically isolated longitudinally extending conductors having ends terminating in first and second surfaces, with the ends terminating in said first surface being located inside said evacuated region confronting said input port, and with the ends terminating in said second surface being located outside said evacuated region and facing externally of said vacuum housing means;
said preselected resolution of said high resolution 2-D array being selected to substantially preserve the fidelity of the input 2-D electromagnetic signal;
said 2-D electronic charge intensity distribution being locally received by said ends of said two dimensional electronic charge collecting and electrically conductive feedthrough means terminating in said first surface of said high-resolution 2-D array of electrically isolated and longitudinally extending conductors and individually electrically transferred thereby to associated ones of the ends thereof terminating in said second surface of said high-resolution 2-D array of electrically isolated longitudinally extending conductors of said feedthrough means so as to provide at said second ends and externally of the housing an electrical 2-D output signal having a spacially varying output intensity distribution corresponding to that of the input electromagnetic signal.

5 more elements

A high spacial resolution, high-current gain, power microchannel plate assembly, comprising:

means for providing a two-dimensional array of high-efficiency, secondary electron emitting discrete dynode chains that each define an electron amplification channel and that together define a cross-talk-free and high-spacial-resolution high-current two-dimensional charge amplifier;
and
means coupled to the two-dimensional array of high-efficiency, secondary electron emitting discrete dynode chains for applying a potential across the constituative dynodes of each of the chains of dynodes to control the electron amplification of the channels and for feeding charge into the constituative dynodes of each chain of dynodes to provide high-current and non-saturation-limited electron amplification channels;
said array providing means including a lamination of plural, apertured insulative sheets each having opposing two-dimensional surfaces and a coating of a high-efficiency secondary electron emitting conductive material disposed on the same one of the opposed surfaces of each of the apertured insulative sheets which material partially extends into the apertures of each of the insulative apertured sheets;
the several layers of the high-efficiency secondary electron emitting conductive material disposed on the same one of the opposing surfaces of each of the apertured insulative sheets being electrically isolated from adjacent layers by the intervening insulative sheets.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.