Quite some years ago I undertook some postgraduate research at The University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. As anyone who has done this (or even known someone) would be aware, most research thesis are carefully bound into a book, examined, then buried in the bowels of some university's library never to be seen again! In the hope that it will provide a useful resource to anyone pursuing similar endeavours, I have exhumed and "published" here an edited version of my MSc Thesis on Echelle spectroscopy.
A prototype fiber-fed echelle spectrograph was constructed and proved the viability of extending the capabilities of modest sized telescope systems through the inclusion of more advanced instrumentation. An overview of the rationale can be found in the following conference paper on "Spectroscopy On Small Telescopes..." [Open as PDF]. If that wets you appetite then a "trimmed and updated" version of the original thesis may be found on the "Echelle" pages.
A summary of the characteristics and operation of CCD detectors is also included.