Normalized spectrum of 6338 Quartz Tungsten Halogen (QTH) lamp used in the APEX2-QTH Illuminator.Quartz tungsten halogen lamp broadband light source
Collimated 1.3 in. (33 mm) diameter output beam
Built in power supply - no voltage or current adjustments required
Simple lamp replacement – no alignment needed
Adjustable lens for F/# matching when coupling to a monochromator or spectrograph
Integrated filter wheel holds up to 6 filters, can be manually or software controlled
The Oriel Instruments’ APEX2 series is an illumination system using a highly efficient QTH lamp ( 6338 ) to provide cost effective solutions for scientific and industrial applications. The APEX2 series includes a standard integrated six-position filter wheel (filters sold separately) that can be controlled manually, via USB 2.0, or through Oriel Instruments’ Cornerstone Series and MS257 Series Monochromators.
With an integrated power supply, the APEX2 is specifically designed for applications requiring simple turn key operation and portability. Intensity adjustment is achieved using the built in mechanical iris for a light intensity range of 100% when the iris is fully open, to 2% at its minimum diameter. An easily accessible manual shutter provides complete light blockage and eliminates the need to power down the lamp when adjusting your setup. An “adjustment free” drop in lamp design ensures minimal effort is necessary to replace lamps. For maximum versatility, the APEX2 accepts either Oriel Instruments 1.5 inch flanges or the Newport Lens Tube (LT), enabling it to couple to a wide assortment of optics and optical components, such as beam expanders, telescopes, microscopes, collimators, fibers or monochromators.
The optional Lock-In Digital Amplifier Stanford Research Systems Kit ( LIDA-SRS-KIT ) transforms the APEX2 into a modulated light source ideal for time transient studies or lock-in detection.
The The APEX2-QTH uses a 100W QTH lamp ( 6338 ) to provide an efficient broadband grey body source. The integrated ellipsoidal reflector offers increased light coupling efficiency by capturing a larger solid emission angle, a simplified drop-in lamp installation, and an alignment free lamp replacement.
The APEX2 Illumination System incorporates a motorized filter wheel that holds up to six 1 in (25.4 mm). diameter filters, with maximum 0.20 in. (6.0 mm) thickness, that can be sequentially selected manually or through computer control via USB 2.0. The stepper motor has been optimized to provide consistent filter positioning as well as a speed of 1.7 sec/filter. An easy to read LED display indicator positioned on the rear-facing panel of the filter enclosure indicates which filter is in use for easy and safe monitoring of the system.
The filter wheel is referred to as “universal” because it can be controlled by connecting it to a variety of Oriel monochromators such as Oriel’s Cornerstone 130, Cornerstone 260 or MS257 families. The utility programs included with the monochromators or their optional hand controllers may also be used to control the filter wheel.
A LabVIEW™ based APEX2 Utility Software is provided with the APEX2 to allow full filter wheel control via USB connection. The APEX2 Utility Software is compatible with Windows XP and Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit) operating systems.
TracQ Basic ( TRACQ-BASIC-V066 ) radiometry software is ideal for acquiring, processing and displaying data in real time. TracQ Basic integrates Oriel monochromators with detection systems, and no programming knowledge is required to set up and control the instruments. For those who wish to create their own programs, low-level commands may be sent from the computer to the APEX2 via its USB connector.
The APEX2 is readily integrated with an Oriel Monochromator, such as the Cornerstone 130 / 260 or MS257. The monochromator directly controls the filter wheel, which in turn controls the function from the monochromator, making it fully backward compatible. The filter wheel changing speed is 1.7 sec/filter. The filter wheel holds six 1.0 inch (25.4 mm) diameter filters up to 0.20 in. (5 mm) thick.
Normalized spectrum of 6338 Quartz Tungsten Halogen (QTH) lamp used in the APEX2-QTH Illuminator.
The normalized spectral output of the APEX2 is plotted in logarithmic axis against wavelength for the 200 to 1780 nm range in Figure 4. Shown in tabulated form, the spectral power distribution is shown in 100 nm bins from 200 to 1000 nm and a 780 nm wide bin from 100 to 1780 nm. Specification of the measured beam are provided in the bottom left of the plot.
A built-in mechanical iris allows the output intensity to be manually controlled. At its minimum diameter, the iris reduces the output intensity of the APEX2 to approximately 2% of its original intensity when the iris is open at its maximum diameter.
The APEX2 includes a manually operated shutter. When the lamp is not needed, it may remain on by closing off the light path. The lamp can remain warmed up, while lamp stress is reduced with fewer lamp ignitions or startups. The ability to close the shutter when desired also helps to prevent unnecessary exposure to UV.
The APEX2-QTH includes a feature allowing the lamp intensity to be controlled by a DC voltage source. An external voltage supply can be connected to the back of the APEX2 QTH via a BNC connection to supply 0-5 VDC, with 5 VDC input allowing the lamp to run at its maximum power of 100 W.
APEX2 uses four adjustable feet with a 0.5 inch (13 mm) height adjustment to level the unit. For convenient mounting to an optical table, the feet may be removed and the mounting holes on the base plate can bolt the APEX2 to an optical table. The mounting holes on the base plate support both metric and imperial optical tables.