Miniature imaging plasma spectrometer: A new approach with large geometric factor and wide field of view

Silicon micro-fabrication enables new imaging plasma spectrometers that are small, consume little power, and maintain the performance level of conventional spectrometers; ×10 to ×100 mass reduction can be achieved, depending on application. Arrays of narrow collimator channels (1° divergence) with high transmission (> 70%) allow energy analysis of electrons/ions without the need for focusing, giving effective aperture areas about 20% of detector pixel footprint. With this approach, a 1×1 cm² pixel may be fabricated having about 2×10⁶ collimator channels, 50 energy selector slots, a single field of view, and a single detector anode. A typical spectrometer consists of a set of pixels with common energy scan, each pixel with its own field of view. The energy analyzers operate with relatively small voltage/energy factors. For example, it is possible to have a spectrometer made up of a square array of pixels laid out in a flat configuration with a net field of view 60°×60°, each pixel with its own viewing angle with energy range 10 eV to 40 keV.