QHY600M SERIES [MONOCHROME]

 

The QHY 600M Series are full-frame CMOS cooled astronomy cameras containing the monochrome Sony IMX455, a revolutionary back illuminated sensor with a QE above 90% and true 16-bit A/D, translating to a dynamic range of 14 stops. The pixels have a size of 3.76 µm and a resolution of 61 Megapixels.

The full well capacity at full resolution is above 51,000 e-, it rises above 204,000 e- at binning 2x2 without excessively reducing the resolution and remaining above 15 Megapixels.

 

 

QHY has developed four different capture modes for the 600 series:

• #0 Photographic Mode: this is the standard mode that can be used for general astrophotography. The readout noise rapidly drops between 25 and 26 (2.5e- at gain 26), ideal for long focal length telescopes where a longer exposure time is required. The trade-off at gain 26 is a lower full well capacity at 25,000 e-. In fast telescopes (f/2.2 - f/4) the gain can be set to zero to use the maximum full well capacity (51,000 e-).

• #1 High Gain Mode: the readout noise is much lower at 3.5e- between gain 0 and 55. This mode is ideal for narrowband imaging where long exposures are generally required. Above gain 55, the readout noise drops even further at 1.5e-.

• #2 Super Full Well: ideal for objects with bright stars or strong contrast. The full well capacity is at the highest level along the entire gain range.

• #3 Extended Full Well: The advantage of this mode is that it has the same full well value and system gain as the #2 mode, but the read noise is reduced by about 1.3 times.

Unlike DSLR cameras, the QHY 600M offers true RAW image output that only records the signal without artefacts, noise reduction or hot pixel removal, which can undermine post processing and final quality of the image.

Several different versions of the QHY600M are available, including:

Photographic-grade featuring:

• Short backfocus (14.5mm flange distance), or regular backfocus (17.5mm flange distance + 6mm CAA).
• Air cooling.
• USB 3.0 connectivity.

Scientific-grade featuring:

• Short backfocus (14.5mm flange distance), or regular backfocus (17.5mm flange distance + 6mm CAA).
• Liquid cooling (requiring optional liquid cooling kit), or air-cooled.
• 2 x 10Gb fibre interface (requiring optional PCIE grabber card).
• 2 x 10Gb fibre (requiring optional PCIE grabber card), plus CameraLink interface.

Note: 

The Short Back Focus version of the QHY600M utilizes a special short backfocus front piece that allows the camera to have 14.5mm of backfocus. This version is designed for use with DSLR lenses with an attached filter wheel. Customers who do not explicitly need the short backfocus should instead purchase the regular versions. The structure of the camera puts the optical glass close to the sensor, increasing the chance of dew formation.

The front part of the short back focus version includes six M2.5 screw holes 80mm in diameter. The QHY600 SBFL versions can easily match Canon/Nikon lens, even with filter wheel.

The two-stage TEC cooling brings the sensor temperature 35°C below ambient with air-cooling for low noise imaging even in warm climates. The liquid cooling versions in combination with the optional liquid cooler kit (sold separately) bring this down by approximately 10°C further. Additionally, thanks to the lack of moving mechanical parts, the liquid-cooled versions will never introduce any vibration, keeping the images free from jitter.

The dark current at -20°C is only 0.002 electron/pixels. In addition, QHYCCD employs unique thermal noise control to reduce noise to a very low value without affecting the integrity of the raw image. The QHY 600M employs a full anti-dew technology for both CMOS sensor cover glass and the optical window.

The 2GB DDR3 memory buffer is especially useful for when USB traffic is high, the writing speed of your computer is slow or occupied with other processes.

To avoid halos around bright stars, the QHY 600M series features an AR coated optical window on both sides rather than the common IR/UV cut coating. Also, the sensor protection glass is AR coated to maximize light transmission and minimize internal reflections.

The QHY 600M series has zero amplifier glow no matter how long the exposure is.

 

 

 

 

 

The Horsehead nebula - Wu Zhen, Celestron RASA11, QHYCCD QHY600, Antlia Ha 3.5nm

Specifications

 

Sensor	Sony IMX455 back illuminated full frame - MONOCHROME
Resolution	61.17 Megapixels 9576 x 6388
Pixel size	3.76 µm
Sensor size	24mm x 36mm (43.27mm diagonal)
Quantum efficiency	>87%
Exposure range	40µs-3600s
Read noise	3.7e- at high gain ; 1.0e- at lowest gain
Dark current	0.0022e-/pixel/sec @ -20C
Full well capacity	51,000 e-
Bit rate	Native 16 bit ADC
Frame rate	2.5 fps at full resolution (16 bits)
Shutter type	Rolling shutter
Cooling	Air-cooled: ΔT of 35°C Dual Stage TEC cooler, Liquid-cooled: ΔT of 45°C
Memory buffer	2 GB DDR3
ROI	Supported
Compatibility	Mac, Windows, Linux
Optical window	AR coated (both sides)
Ports	Choice of either USB 3.0, 2 x 10Gb fibre, or CameraLink, plus CFW port on all models
Compatibility	Mac, Windows, Linux
Back focus	Short backfocus version: 14.5 mm (including the flange, see schematic below), Regular backfocus version: 17.5 mm plus 6 mm CAA.
Power consumption	40W (at 100% cooling power, air-cooled)
Connections	M54 x 0.75 female thread (embedded in camera dovetail adapter)
Dimensions	Ø 90 mm; ↨ varies depending on model
Weight	850 g (without tilt adapter)
Power supply	12V 3.5A  (2.1×5.5 mm connector)

QHY600PH-SBFL:

 QHY600PH:

QHY600M-PH + CFW3L

QHY600M-PH SBFL + CFW3L + OAGM

QHY600M-PH SBFL + CFW3L + OAGM-PRO

QHY600M-PH SBFL + CFW3L + DSLR

Included items

 

• QHY 600M
• USB 3.0 cable (1.5m)
• Screwed power cable (5.5-2.1mm male jack with locking nut to 5.5-2.1mm female jack)
• Desiccant Drying Tube (desiccant not included)
  
• M54 x 0.75 to 2"adapter (2.5mm optical thickness, M48 x 0.75 internal thread for standard 2" filters)
  
• Combo B1 adapter kit (for QHY600M-PH-SBFL version only)
• Combo C1 adapter kit (for QHY600M-PH version only)
  
• Power supply 240 to 12V 5A with 5.5-2.1 jack

 

Downloads

 

 

QHY camera drivers

QHY 600 manual