CCD IMAGE SENSOR COOLING MECHANISM

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a CCD image sensor cooling mechanism for cooling a CCD area image sensor to a low temperature by connecting it to a stirling refrigerator. SOLUTION: A disclosed CCD image sensor cooling mechanism is configured by air-tightly connecting the lower end of a connection pipe 25 to the section of a through-hole formed on the bottom face of a vacuum container 22, and air-tightly connecting the upper end of the connection pipe to the tip section of a heat transferring rod 24 connected to the low temperature end 13 of a stirling refrigerator 1, and placing the CCD area image sensor 21 via an insulating substrate 26 on the top end of the heat transferring rod inside the vacuum container, and installing a light transmitting window 23 at the position corresponding to the CCD area image sensor on the upper face of the vacuum container, and covering the connection section of the low temperature edge of the stirling refrigerator and the heat transferring rod with a heat insulator 16. COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT