wp6 - software

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• UKATC (or "ULTRACAM") system:
  
  
  • designed for high-speed data acquisition
  • includes accurate timestamping, which is critical for HTRA applications
  • based on the widely-used SDSU controller and linux PC's
  • simple design philosophy (DSP/XML/HTTP), making it highly portable and easy to develop
  • extensive experience with system - 61 nights on the WHT and 17 nights on the VLT allocated to ULTRACAM in the 3 years since first light
  • software in demand from other users: WFCAM (JACH), FMOS (Durham/RAL), DAZLE (IoA), EMIR (IAC).......
  
  
  
  
• aim of our contribution to WP6:
  
  
  • add EMCCD functionality to the UKATC system
  
  
  
  
• status of our contribution to WP6:
  
  
  • successfully tested simple DSP application to read out engineering-grade detector procured as part of WP2 (Q4 2004)
  
  
  
  
• future plans for our contribution to WP6:
  
  
  • design and write full suite of DSP applications (i.e. windowed-modes, drift mode) to read out science-grade EMCCD's procured as part of WP2 (Q3 2005- Q1 2006)
  • write spectroscopic version of the ULTRACAM pipeline data reduction system (Q3 2005-Q1 2006)
  
  
  
  
• spend, to date, on our contribution to WP6:
  
  
  • staff effort (at UKATC): 0.5 months
  
  
  
  
• future spend on our contribution to WP6:
  
  
  • staff effort (at UKATC): 2 months

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