Hamamatsu Ir Vidicon Tube N2606-06, Tube replacement.

[Oleg]

Dear friends.
I am hoping to get a help from experienced electronic specialists.
First of all, I am new member here and have nothing to do with electronics.

I have Hamamatsu Infrared camera C2741-03c with N2606-02 vidicon tube inside. The maximum wavelength of IR is 1800 nm. Because I have been working with some type of forensic examination I need to increase the wavelength up to 2200 nm. For this purpose I found an original Hamamatsu N2606-06 vidicon tube.

I tried to ask the Hamamatsu US headquarter staff in NJ, but to receive a more-less reasonable answer it takes up to 3 months of waiting.

I would like to know, if I simply replace my existing N2606-02 with N2606-06 vidicon tube, will the wavelength be increased automatically or in addition, I need to do some electronic parts replacement or adjustment.

The camera works with controller, the controller has lots of knobs, like sensitivity, contrast, brightness, etc.

http://sales.hamamatsu.com/en/products/sys...php?&checkprod=

Thank you for your advise and thoughts.

PS. Sorry for my English.

This post has been edited by Oleg on November 30, 2012 04:18 pm

[Geek]

Hello Oleg,

All you would need are the spec sheets for the two tubes to be able to make that judgement

The compatable things to look for are:
- Pinout
- Voltages

And possibly, but unlikely:
- Deflection info

Cheers!

[Oleg]

Dear Geek.

Thank you for the advise.

It's almost impossible to get the spec sheet for the Hamamatsu tubes. That's why I brought this issue here, at the forum. I know that the both tubes have the same pins. I would say the both tubes are identical to my eye. Since the controller has a knob "sensitivity" maybe it is related to voltage changes? The more voltage, the longer wavelengh?
Thank you.

This post has been edited by Oleg on November 30, 2012 04:58 pm

[Geek]

Well, if it were me, I'd put the new tube in and see if it worked or not.

About all you can do without waiting for info.

Cheers!

[Oleg]

Thank you, Geek.
This is exactly what I was planning to do.
I think I will not damage the tube by replacing. I think if there is a voltage difference between N2606-02 and N2606-06, that difference in minimal and I won't burn the tube. Am I right?

[Geek]

I'm not a vidicon expert, but I know tubes fairly well and you are correct.

Cheers!

[CWB]

they should pin-out the same ... according to what i have found , you can expect a decrease in resolution as it pertains to dynamic range .
but , yes , it is a 2200nm tube .

an idea of what may need to be done to increase or expand the dynamic range can be found here :
http://alacron.com/clientuploads/directory...3-Datasheet.pdf

[Chale44]

Hello Oleg,

I just joined this forum expressly to connect with you. I too need to try to round up a 2 micron-sensitive vidicon camera (or even a tube if nothing else, and round up an appropriate camera separately, much as you did). I'm wondering how this all worked out for you, and to also frankly inquire into whether you might be in a position to sell it once you're done? The things are irritatingly rare, I have to say. If anyone else reading this might have other options, I'm sure open to hearing them. Thanks. C. Hale, Lafayette CO USA

[CWB]

i wonder what the chances of finding a suitable ccd or similar imaging device that is suitably sensitive down into the IR region are ?
they are making more solid state stuff than vidicons these days .

many common BW ccds (think those small bw cameras) have ir filters on them .
they can be removed to make a somewhat crude ir camera if a suitable filter is placed ahead of the device .
it is a cheap hack .
i do not know if the sensitivity of these cheapo cameras is sufficient at 2200nm .
(i suspect not)

sooo ... a solid state device should be available ... price is another matter .

[Chale44]

CWB,

Two microns is kind of aggravatingly tough as it turns out. CCDs are silicon devices, and so as such are pretty much physics-limited to about 1.1 um wavelength. InGaAs array camera (Sensors Unlimited Inc being one of the main sources) are great, but they quit at about 1.7 um (extended-response InGaAs with good responsivity all the way to 2.1 um is a reality, but dense arrays of them as a COTS product, ain't...). Microbolometer array cameras ("thermal" cameras) start at about 3 um, so no dice there either. So, these bizarre old lead-sulfide vidicon cameras are rather uniquely capable there, if you can find the extended-IR response tube for one of those cameras, too. We just purchased a very nice Dage-MTI LSC-70 camera, but alas, looks like it's got a 1700 nm tube in it, not a 2200 nm tube. I'd love to find one of these tubes (Hamamatsu, and Dage, designation N2606-06). C. Hale

[CWB]

yep ... it seems that the old technology is still a viable option .

hamamatsu ... i seem to recall *something* about studio video cameras made by them .
where i used to live/work the high school and one of the local TV stations had a few of their cameras .
man , i replaced a lot of capacitors and other components in them just to keep them running .
the alignment/balancing was a bit of a bear ... i wound up ordering a set of special alignment/chroma/geometry cards and running them under "standard" lights .
but man , when they worked , they worked great .

it looks like those 2200 tubes are something to keep an eye out for .

[CWB]

i found this :
http://www.photonicsonline.com/doc.mvc/hig...r-spectrum-0001

they say it will go down to 2200 nm ... you have to register to download the specs .

another unit : http://www.findrscope.com/SPD/near-ir-came...-1184766988.jsp

and a steal at 16 kilobucks !