A HIGH-SPEED DIGITAL IMAGING-SYSTEM FOR RECORDING NONREPETITIVE TRANSIENT EVENTS

A high-speed digital imaging system employing electronic controls and standard optical elements has been developed. A cavity-dumped argon La ser is used to provide very short duration monochromatic light pulses with short interpulse times, while an acousto-optic deflector provides spatial separation of each image. Electronic solid-state imaging is a ccomplished with charge injection device cameras. Full frame images (5 12 x 512 pixels) of the actual light intensity variations in the image d object are digitally recorded to a resolution of 256 gray levels usi ng a frame grabber and a host computer. This system has applications i n the study of high-speed phenomena, such as dynamic fracture, impact mechanics and fluid flow.