6. Operation Procedures

6.1. Standard Shift Operations

6.1.1. Start of Shift

6.1.1.1. Opening Karabo

If karabo is already open, skip to the next section. The Karabo project to control FastCCD is SCS_CDIDET_FCCD2M_DET (see Section 4.1). Load it and then open the following scenes:

  • Control
  • Bias
  • Interlock
  • Temperature
  • Status

6.1.1.2. Elog

The FastCCD Elog can be found it at in.xfel.eu/elog/FastCCD. Use it to report everything concerning detector commissioning and operation, especially also errors and issues.

At the beginning of your shift start a new elog entry. Make the following checklist table and fill out the required information as shown:

Task Result Notes
Screenshot OK? Taken before turning the bias on
Initial Check (device status? Main power on? Bias off? Temperature?) OK?  
Turn bias on OK?  
Adjust heaters’ set points to cool down the camera OK?  
Operation Gain High, Medium, Low or Auto  
Integration Time (Exposure Time) in ms value (usually 1 ms)  
Take dark runs once temperature is stabilized OK?  

6.1.1.3. Powering Up the Detector

If the camera is already on, skip to the next section. Follow these instructions to turn on the chiller and the detector.

  1. turn the chiller on as described in Section 3.4.1
  2. Make sure that the Lakeshore Set Points are set according to Section 6.2 (camera off configuration)
  3. wait for the CCD temperature to fall below 0 degC.
  4. if the “Ext power supply” indicator is off, turn it on (Interlock scene)
  5. the karabo control device will be in ERROR state because it could not talk to the power supply; press the “Reset” button in the Control scene
  6. power up the camera and the main power supply and adjust the temperature control (see Section 4.2)

6.1.1.4. Main Power Is On

If the camera is on, you should open the Control scene and:

  1. make sure that the Control Device status is ON, that the camera is on and the bias voltages and clocks are off

  2. check that the CCD heater and the Rod heater are in the “end of shift” configuration (see Section 6.2)

  3. configure the detector and turn the bias voltage on (see Section 4.2.3 for details and warnings)

    1. make sure that the detector is not receiving triggers
    2. send the bias file and check the uploaded values
    3. send the fCRIC file
    4. send a few triggers to check that you see the typical fCRIC noise pattern
    5. turn triggers off and turn bias and clock on
    6. change the heaters setting to the “data taking” configuration (see Section 6.2) and wait for the CCD temperature to stabilize

#. Once the temperature is stable, take a dark run of 500 trains for each gain setting. Repeat this step if you change the temperature set-point of the camera or if the detector had to be power cycled. The run types corresponding to the four gains should be available in the Run Controller. If they are not present, go to the Metadata Catalog in.xfel.eu/metadata/proposals , and select the current proposal and add them one by one as follows:

  1. Dark High Gain
  2. Dark Medium Gain
  3. Dark Low Gain
  4. Dark Auto Gain

If you want to process the dark run so that it can be used by the online preview, see Section 5.2.1.

6.1.2. End of Shift

Submit the elog entry of the shift.

Turn the bias off and put the detector in the “end of shift” configuration (see Section 6.2).

Detailed instructions to turn the detector off are found in Section 4.4.

6.2. Temperature Stabilization

Depending on the camera status and desired CCD temperature, the rod heater needs to be set according to the following table. Make sure that the range of both heaters is 3 (High). For additional details see Section 3.5.

FastCCD status CCD bias voltage CCD Heater setpoint (degC) Rod heater setpoint (degC) Notes
Off Off -28 -40  
Main power on Off -28 -50 Leave FastCCD in this state at the “end of the shift” or if there is no one in the control room
Main power on On -40 -80 These are the nominal “data taking” conditions for the user run

It takes ~1h to switch form the “end of the shift” to the “data taking”. Change the heaters set-points as soon as the camera status changes.

Danger

Do not leave FastCCD with the bias on if there is no one in the control room.

Note

The Bias voltage can only be turned on if T_CCD > -30 degC. Do not cool down the camera below that threshold if the bias voltage is off.

6.3. Safety Measures

For instructions on how to safely operate the detector and the significant factors in doing so, see Section 4.3.1.

The temperature related part of the interlock system is provided by the Lakeshore temperature controller; Karabo is not aware of it and may show the power supplies or the chiller as ON even though they have been switched off by the Lakeshore.

The pressure part of the interlock is handled by a Beckoff PLC.

Input Condition Action Notes
Lakeshore 336 Alarm T_CCD > 0C Turns off Keysight and Acopian power supply Turns off camera and fiber optics power supplies
Lakeshore 336 Alarm T_CCD < -60C Turns off CRYOMECH Turns off chiller
Beckoff P > 1E-3 mbar Turns off Keysight and Acopian power supply and CRYOMECH Turns off chiller, camera, and fiber optics power supplies [1]
Beckoff Turbo pump failure Turns off Keysight and Acopian power supply and CRYOMECH Turns off chiller, camera, and fiber optics power supplies
[1]Bake at 35 degC for 1h before operating again.