Can a CCD Be Used in Reverse to Generate Surface Charge?

AI Thread Summary
A CCD can theoretically be run in reverse to generate surface charge, but practical applications may be limited. Photocopiers and laser printers utilize static charge to create patterns, which could inspire alternative methods for achieving similar results. Creating a photographic negative or positive and projecting it onto a photosensitive material is suggested as a viable approach. It's important to select the right type of CCD, ideally one that allows reverse clocking and has appropriate test inputs. Overall, while the concept is intriguing, its utility for specific applications may require further exploration.
jkg0
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
I am working on a research project in which I will need to create a pattern of charge on the surface of a material. Could a CCD be run in reverse to create a pattern of electrons on its surface?
 
Engineering news on Phys.org
jkg0 said:
I am working on a research project in which I will need to create a pattern of charge on the surface of a material. Could a CCD be run in reverse to create a pattern of electrons on its surface?

Interesting idea. I'm not sure about that, but are you already aware of how photocopiers place & use static charge on surfaces?

http://home.howstuffworks.com/photocopier1.htm

.
 
Could you make a photographic negative or positive of the pattern you want then project this pattern on the surface of a photosensitive material (as berkeman is ssuggesting)? I suppose you could use a flat screen monitor as a pattern generator.
 
Modern CCDs are used for image sensors but they were originally developed for use as memories so yes in principle you can input charge to them and make an image. CCD sensors have a buffer at the output node that in most cases will prevent you from doing that but many CCDs probably have a method to inject a test charge that can be scanned through the CCD for testing charge transfer efficiency and other things. In most cases these probably aren't documented in the data sheet.

That said I don't know that it would be useful for your application.
 
You need a ccd that can reverse clock, so not a virtual phase device.
You probably also want a full frame astronomy type device not an interline TV chip.
You also need a test input before the output amplifier
Some science CCDs come with alternate test outputs or simple unbuffered output transistors.
 
berkeman said:
Interesting idea. I'm not sure about that, but are you already aware of how photocopiers place & use static charge on surfaces?

http://home.howstuffworks.com/photocopier1.htm

.
Or a laser printer. You could produce a charge pattern by scanning a laser over the surface.
 
Very basic question. Consider a 3-terminal device with terminals say A,B,C. Kirchhoff Current Law (KCL) and Kirchhoff Voltage Law (KVL) establish two relationships between the 3 currents entering the terminals and the 3 terminal's voltage pairs respectively. So we have 2 equations in 6 unknowns. To proceed further we need two more (independent) equations in order to solve the circuit the 3-terminal device is connected to (basically one treats such a device as an unbalanced two-port...
Thread 'Weird near-field phenomenon I get in my EM simulation'
I recently made a basic simulation of wire antennas and I am not sure if the near field in my simulation is modeled correctly. One of the things that worry me is the fact that sometimes I see in my simulation "movements" in the near field that seems to be faster than the speed of wave propagation I defined (the speed of light in the simulation). Specifically I see "nodes" of low amplitude in the E field that are quickly "emitted" from the antenna and then slow down as they approach the far...
Back
Top