A fast microchannel plate-scintillator detector for velocity map imaging and imaging mass spectrometry
Citation
Winter, B., King, S. J., Brouard, M., & Vallance, C. (2014). A fast microchannel plate-scintillator detector for velocity map imaging and imaging mass spectrometry. The Journal of Chemical Physics, 140(8), 084204.1 This article was received on October 31, 2013 and accepted on February 9, 2014. It was published online on February 28, 2014. The authors' affiliations at the time of publication were:
- B. Winter and C. Vallance: Department of Chemistry, Chemistry Research Laboratory, University of Oxford
- M. Brouard: Department of Chemistry, Physical and Theoretical Chemistry Laboratory, University of Oxford
This citation follows the guidelines of the American Institute of Physics (AIP) style. You may want to independently verify this information. The article was published by AIP Publishing LLC. The authors acknowledge the support of several organizations, including:
- Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (U.K.)
- European Union
- STFC
- ERC
- ISIS Innovation Ltd.
The work described in the article is subject to a patent application by ISIS Innovations Ltd. (UK Patent No.: 1310476.5).
Keywords
- Exalite laser dyes
- scintillator screens
- velocity-map imaging
- imaging mass spectrometry
- time resolution
- brightness
- emission lifetime
- electron-to-photon conversion efficiency
- P47 phosphor
Brief
Exalite laser dyes, especially Exalite 404, show promise as scintillator screen materials for charged particle imaging applications due to their improved time resolution and brightness compared to standard P47 phosphor screens. The Exalite 404 scintillator has an emission lifetime of less than 4 ns, which is more than an order of magnitude faster than P47. Additionally, Exalite 404 is two to three times more efficient than P47.
Summary
Organic vs. Inorganic Scintillators
A new type of scintillator screen, based on Exalite laser dyes, has been developed for use in charged-particle imaging applications such as velocity-map imaging and imaging mass spectrometry. The performance of the new organic scintillator screens was directly compared to a standard inorganic phosphor screen, P47.
The new Exalite scintillator screens are significantly faster than traditional P47 phosphor screens. For example, the Exalite 389 and Exalite 404 screens had emission lifetimes of less than 4 nanoseconds, while the P47 phosphor had an emission lifetime of nearly 70 nanoseconds. The Exalite 404 screen showed comparable spatial resolution and superior brightness to the P47 phosphor screen, with no significant signal degradation observed, even after extended use. Notably, the Exalite 404 screen was two to three times more efficient than the P47 screen. This increased brightness allows detectors equipped with Exalite 404 screens to be operated at lower gains, which could extend the lifespan of the microchannel plates used in these detectors.
Researchers concluded that fluorescent dye scintillator screens like those utilizing Exalite 404 show strong potential for applications requiring fast time response and efficient electron-to-photon conversion.