Photon-noise-limited operation of intensified CCD cameras

Intensified CCD cameras are increasingly being used in quantitative applications, which requires not only a greater understanding of their operation but also more detailed modeling to predict their performance more accurately. We have developed a model based on photon-noise-limited operation that incorporates the effects of the point spread function of the intensifier on signal-to-noise ratio. These effects are absent in other models, which renders them inadequate to model the camera performance properly. Calculations of noise-equivalent irradiance with our model are shown to be in good agreement with experimental results presented for two Xybion intensified cameras, Models GEN-III IMC and NIR DCIC intensified cameras.