TMCF PGE: DCPEAKS

This TMCF PGE counts the number of CCD detector pixels in the UV and VIS channels that have a permanently increased dark current as a result of one or more impacts, predominantly from high-energetic protons (> 10 MeV) trapped in the Earth's magnetic field. Such protons can cause either a short-duration spike in the measurement data (called a transient), or permanent damage to the CCD detector pixels that are hit. The permanent damage manifests itself as an increased dark current of the pixel, and/or increased noise in that pixel, and/or the appearance of so-called Random Telegraph Signal (RTS) effects. RTS effects can be observed as jumping of the detector dark signal between two or more quasistable levels. Permanent damage to CCD pixels originating from proton hits does not automatically render the pixels useless for science applications. Only a very small fraction of pixels that are affected by proton radiation damage can no longer be used for scientific purposes and are flagged accordingly. The PGE uses long-exposure unbinned dark measurements as input.