A Study of Microchannel Plate Intensifiers

We present measurements of the gain and pulse height distribution width of a microchannel plate (MCP) chevron pair as a function of the voltages applied to each plate and across the interplate gap. These data are used to test an existing theory which describes how the gain of the chevron pair is related to the gains of the individual plates under conditions of single-electron input. In addition, we show how the requirement for high mean gain and narrow pulse-height distribution may be achieved.