Answers to Your Top Chromatiq Spectral Engine^™ Questions

For information about the Chromatiq Spectral Engine™, please email info@energetiq.com.

Hamamatsu Photonics distributes Energetiq products in most countries. Please visit the Contact Us page or the Hamamatsu website, to submit a request for a quotation or send an email to info@energetiq.com. 

Custom configurations are available to meet stringent OEM application requirements. Please contact us at info@energetiq.com to initiate a discussion.

We recommend changing the bulb inside the laser-driven light source that powers the CSE after 10,000 hours of operation.

We define the lifetime of the lamp / bulb as when the intensity has dropped more than 50% at 500 nm. The spectral output at 500 nm decreases about 1% - 2% every 1,000 hours under standard operating conditions with nitrogen purging.

The standard warranty is 12 months. Extended warranties are available for certain models and circumstances.

After the system is initially powered on, we recommend a warm-up time of approximately 30 minutes before taking measurements to ensure that the CSE has reached thermal equilibrium. The actual warm-up time for an application may be longer or shorter depending on the precision of measurements to be made.

The CSE includes integrated fans, and no external cooling hardware is required.

The CSE can match any broadband light spectrum that can be measured with high accuracy in terms of the actual spectral content at each wavelength. 

The CSE can match any broadband spectrum that can be: 

1. measured by a spectrometer.
2. described in a tabular data file (relative intensity vs. wavelength).
3. created using the convenient tools in the CSE Host Application software (ramp top, flat top, combination, narrow peak). 

There are two models of the CSE available with different wavelength ranges. 

• CSE-EQ-99-VIS: 380 – 780 nm
• CSE-EQ-99-VIS-NIR: 380 – 1100 nm 

The resolution varies slightly by wavelength range:

• The resolution of the CSE-EQ-99-VIS is 
  < 5nm full-width half maximum (FWHM).
• The resolution of the CSE-EQ-99-VIS-NIR is as follows:
  • 380 – 780 nm: < 5 nm FWHM
  • 780 – 1100 nm: < 15 nm FWHM

The CSE can switch from one spectrum to another within 10 milliseconds, with no settling time.

Yes, a spectrum match can be dimmed anywhere from 100% to approximately 3% of the original intensity while maintaining stable spectral content and color coordinates.

Yes, a spectrum match can be flickered using pulse with modulation. The frequency can be set anywhere between 0 Hz and 4,000 Hz, and the duty cycle can be set between 0% and 100%.

The LDTLS generates light within a narrow wavelength band. The narrow band can be centered on a single center wavelength, or progressively scanned across a specific wavelength range. The CSE can match any broadband spectrum and can also generate narrow peaks, either single, or multiple. The CSE can provide a narrow-band wavelength sweep. However, if the narrow-band wavelength sweep is all that is needed, the LDTLS will offer better performance in terms of in-band flux.

The CSE Host Application includes an automated system characterization process that adjusts the output of the CSE based on feedback from a calibrated spectrometer. Characterization is typically performed during system installation and periodically thereafter (typically every month or every several months). An individual spectrometer can support a fleet of any number of CSE systems. One of the following spectrometer models is required for characterization.

The output of the CSE is coupled into a 6.5mm diameter liquid light guide. The liquid light guide model depends on the CSE model (VIS-only or VIS-NIR) and the user’s choice of length. The liquid light guide must be purchased as an additional line item on the purchase order with the CSE.

• •CSE-EQ-99-VIS:
  • CSE-LLG-65-1M: VIS-only, 1-meter length
  • CSE-LLG-65-3M: VIS-only, 3-meter length
• CSE-EQ-99-VIS-NIR:
  • CSE-LLG-65-VIS-NIR-1M: VIS-NIR, 1-meter length
  • CSE-LLG-65-VIS-NIR-3M: VIS-NIR, 3-meter length

Yes. A glass-rod homogenizer is available as an accessory for the CSE. The homogenizer includes an adapter to easily connect to the end of the CSE liquid light guide. The homogenizer offers approximately 95% homogeneity in terms of light intensity. The homogenizer includes a focusing lens that allows for a square area of illumination, with an area that increases with standoff distance. The area ranges from 50 mm x 50 mm at a standoff of 200 mm, up to 220 mm x 220 mm at a standoff of 1,000 mm.

Yes. Energetiq recommends purging with grade of 4.8 nitrogen or higher filtered to 5 μm, to maintain the optics’ cleanliness. Any less nitrogen grade may cause implications for the lamp head optics and could cause a photo-contamination.

For nitrogen purge, a grade of 4.8 or higher purity is recommended to maintain the optics’ cleanliness.

The inlet pressure of nitrogen supply should be set at 20 psig (0.14 MPa) . At the 20 psig, the N2 consumption rate is typically at 0.4 liters/min.

No. Only high-purity nitrogen can be used to purge the CSE.

No. During all normal operation of the CSE, there is no laser output. Our products create incoherent broadband radiation. In a contained system, a laser is used to sustain a xenon plasma and the radiation exiting the CSE is from the plasma.

The CSE is designated as a Class 1 laser product during all normal operation.