Description
The ZWO ASI2600MM-Pro cooled camera: amazing craftsmanship
The new ZWO ASI2600MM-Pro cooled camera uses Sony’s latest back-illuminated IMX571 APS-C format native 16-bit ADC sensor. It is one of the most anticipated astronomy cameras of 2021. Here are some of the reasons why:
- Ultra-high dynamic range of 14 stops
- Ultra-low 1.0e readout noise
- Innovative breakthrough design resulting in zero amp glow
- 16-bits ADC-sensor
Like the color version, the ASI 2600 MM Pro has a very light weight of only 700 grams.
APS-C format
This is a 26MP camera with a small pixel size of 3.76, but also with the incredible ability to accommodate a large Full Well of 50ke. The length and width of the sensor are 23.5 mm x 15.7 mm. The diagonal is 28.3 mm.
Native 16-bit ADC
As one of the few CMOS astronomy cameras with 16-bit ADC on the market, the ASI 2600 MM Pro was designed with the optimal features for astrophotography in mind. This 16-bit ADC is not a CCD 16-bit ADC. It can really achieve a dynamic range of 14 stops, which will greatly improve image sharpness and contrast. This also results in smoother and more natural contrast transitions (as well as color transitions when using different types of filters).
IMX571 Backlit Sensor
Sony’s backlit CMOS image sensor improves sensitivity and noise reduction. The most important factors for improving image quality. It does this by radically realigning the fundamental pixel structure from front lighting to rear lighting. While retaining the advantages of CMOS image sensors such as low power consumption and fast operation.
With a conventional front lighting structure, the metal wiring and transistors on the surface of the silicon substrate that form the light-sensitive region of the sensor (photodiode) hinder the collection of photons by the on-chip lens. A backlit structure minimizes degradation of optical angle response sensitivity. While also increasing the amount of light entering each pixel due to the lack of obstacles such as metal wiring and transistors. These components have been moved to the back of the silicon substrate.
Camera performance
The ASI2600MM Pro offers excellent performance with a dynamic range of up to 14 stops. If the gain value is set to 100, the high gain HCG mode will be enabled. We’re not saying it’s magical, but we’d like to think it’s fairly close. When the HCG mode is enabled, the readout noise is greatly reduced and the dynamic range is basically unchanged. To improve data quality, it is recommended to set the gain to 0 or 100 during deep sky imaging.
Zero Amp Glow
Traditional CMOS sensors produce a weak infrared light source during use that is often seen in the corner of uncalibrated images. They are the tell-tale signs of ‘amp glow’. Because the ASI2600MM Pro uses a zero amp glow circuit, you don’t have to worry about the amp glow, even when using high gain, long exposure imaging.
Anti-dew heater
The ASI2600MM Pro camera has a polyamide heater that fits completely on the protective window. It can help prevent any annoying dew or icing problems depending on the environment you’re shooting in.
The power of the heating is about 5W. You can disable it at any time in your photography software if you want to save power.
Two-stage TEC cooling, ultra-low dark current
Thanks to the two-stage TEC cooling, the ASI2600MM Pro can reduce the temperature of the CMOS sensor to more than 35 degrees Celsius below the ambient temperature. This will significantly reduce dark current generation and sensor noise, even during longer exposures.
The unique dark current suppression technology can further reduce dark current noise. At a cooling temperature of 0°, the dark current noise is only 0.0022e/s/pixel. This means that an exposure of 300s will produce only 0.7th dark current noise, which is less than the readout noise. At a cooling temperature of -20 ° the dark current can even decrease to 0.00012e/s/pixel, which is completely negligible!
Please note that the camera must be connected to an external 11-15v power supply to activate the cooling function. We recommend using a 12V@3A DC adapter (5.5 x 2.1 mm, center pole positive) or lithium battery with 11-15 V to power the camera. If you don’t have one, click here to buy a 12V power adapter. There are 4 different standards for different countries, please make sure you selected the correct adapter when placing the order.
USB3.0 & 256M DDR3 Memory
The ASI2600MM Pro is equipped with USB 3.0 transmission interface and built-in 256MB DDR3 cache to ensure stable and secure data transfer.
Mechanical diagram of the ZWO ASI2600MM-Pro cooled camera
Delivery of the ZWO ASI2600MM-Pro cooled camera includes:
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