The Stanford Research SR430 Multichannel Scaler/Averager is a high-speed data acquisition instrument designed for photon counting, event timing, and signal analysis. It combines amplification, discrimination, bin clocking, and real-time averaging into a single unit, eliminating the need for external analysis systems. The SR430 handles count rates to 100 MHz with no interchannel dead time, making it ideal for time-resolved measurements in LIDAR, time-of-flight mass spectrometry, and fluorescence decay analysis.
Technical Specifications
• Count Rate Capacity: 100 MHz maximum
• Bin Width: 5 ns to 10 ms (selectable); external bin clock input supported for custom sizing
• Bins per Record: 1,024 to 32,768 in 1k increments
• Records per Scan: 1 to 65,536, or continuous free-run mode
• Input Impedance: 50 Ω
• Analog Input Range: ±300 mV
• Input Sensitivity: 10 mV minimum pulse amplitude
• Discriminator Range: ±300 mV, adjustable in 0.2 mV steps
• Discriminator Accuracy: 2 mV + 1%
• Pulse-Pair Resolution: 10 ns (typical)
• Discriminator Output: NIM level (0 to –0.7 V, active low) with 20 ns insertion delay
• Trigger Input Impedance: 10 kΩ
• Trigger Threshold: –2.000 V to +2.000 V in 1 mV steps
• Power Consumption: 60 W
• Power Supply: 100, 120/220, 240 VAC, 50/60 Hz
– Key Features
• Selectable positive or negative slope for discriminator and trigger functions
• Record-by-record averaging with add/subtract capability and polarity control
• External inhibit input for selective record exclusion
• External toggle input for dynamic polarity selection
• Real-time on-screen data display and analysis
• Hardcopy output to Epson-compatible dot-matrix and HP LaserJet printers, plus HP-GL plotters
• Data transfer to hardcopy at 16,384 bins in 500 ms
• 3.5″ DOS-compatible floppy drive (720 kB) for program and data storage
– Interfaces
IEEE-488.2, RS-232, and Centronics printer connectivity enable remote instrument control and data retrieval.
– Typical Applications
Time-of-flight systems, single-photon detection experiments, temporal correlation measurements, and any application requiring synchronized event counting with high timing resolution.
