New detector controller and data acquisition system

Further development of the data acquisition system related to the new detector controller has continued throughout the semester. Part of the improvements have been to make the software more generic, i.e., less depending on the NOT environment and easier to adept to any observing system.

The new controller for the ALFOSC CCD was mounted at the telescope on the 23rd of June. After some tests of the controller and the data acquisition software the system has been released for normal use. In general the system works well, but there are still various issues remaining with the controller before full acceptance. A more detailed description of the performance of the new controller is given below.

As a next step in the general upgrade of the detector controllers the requirements for the new camera for FIES will be defined, and the specific software system setup for FIES will be planned and developed. In parallel to this, the specific user requirements for the NOTCam detector controller (different from optical CCDs) will be made. How to proceed with the development in detail will depend on specific agreements with the team in Copenhagen, but also the delivery time for any new CCD for FIES will be an important factor.