FAST ComTec MCA4A, User Manual

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Software Description
4.1.5 MCS Settings
Clicking the MCS Settings button opens the MCS Settings or MCS2 Settings dialog as shown in Fig. 4.7.
The Range defines the number of time bins, the Dwelltime can be set in units of 10 ns from 30 ns (MCS) or
50 ns (MCS2). The measurement can be stopped automatically after a specified number of sweeps by
checking
Sweep preset. If the checkbox ROI Preset is marked, the measurement will be stopped after
acquiring more events than specified in the interval between the boundaries defined in the corresponding
edit fields. The events are counted only if they are within the ROI limits, i.e. >= the lower limit and < the upper
limit. Another possibility is to acquire data for a given time via the
Time Preset .
A series of measurements can be acquired into separate memory parts by checking Sequential cycles and
specifying the number of cycles. Each single measurement should be terminated preferably by a sweep
preset condition. The complete run stops after performing the specified number of cycles. The spectra are
then shown in a two dimensional view row by row in the MPANT program. As the sequential mode is
implemented in the firmware, there is only a very small delay of 30 ns between the time spectra when using
a sweep preset.
For some measurements it is desired to synchronize the sequential cycles to an external signal from a
sample changer or target mover. This can also be done by using the Digital I/O port together with the
“waitpin” command. Just define any of the function toolbar icons in the MPANT program by a command like
oncycle waitpin 3000 and click on this toolbar icon. Now in sequential mode when a sweep preset is
reached after each individual cycle, the acquisition stops until the voltage level at Dig I/O 7 gets low. If the
voltage is still high after 3000 msec, a message box will pop up and warn that a time out happened. See
section 4.3 about more details and on the syntax of control language commands.
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Fig. 4.7: MCS Settings for one (left) or two stop inputs (right)