The Ectoplasmic Resonance Factor is a measurement of a particular spirit's detectable energy levels in its present manifestation.

The Ghostbusters are a paranormal detainment organization operating in New York City under the title 'Ghostbusters, Inc.' The company was established in 1983, and currently operates in the New York area. It also manages a franchising operation known as Ghostbusters International. The company is currently under 204 separate lawsuits, mostly surrounding a series of events known as the Gozer Incident.

The Proton Pack is a man-portable energy-based weapon invented by Dr. Egon Spengler and Dr. Ray Stantz, PhDs of parapsychology, Columbia University, for the purposes of combating the supernatural. Its function is based on the theory that firing a semi-controlled stream of protons will neutralize and polarize the negatively charged electromagnetic radiation of a ghost, allowing it to be weakened and ultimately detained.

The Proton Pack is technically a particle accelerator that utilizes a miniature cyclotron to concentrate protons stripped through a positron collider into a beam channeled through a neutrona wand. The beam thus generated has been proven to dissipate psychokinetic energy, weakening stronger ghosts and allowing them to be detained, and can completely neutronize weaker ectoplasmic entities. It operates in two primary modes: Attack and Capture. In Attack mode, the device uses a destabilized medium to high-energy particles fired at high velocity in order to weaken an entity's psychokinetic energy; in Capture mode, it generates a stable pulse of low-energy particles that form a 'cage' that can be used to guide a confined entity into a more permanent captivation system.

While this system is powered by nuclear fusion and as such has an operating life of approximately 5,000 years, there are a few important notes:

1) The Proton Pack's stream generator can overheat, resulting in a potential catastrophic explosion that could easily destroy a city block if allowed to reach critical levels. This overload takes approximately twenty seconds of sustained use under standard settings.

2) The Neutrona Wand's particle launcher should never be obstructed under any circumstances, as significant blockages could cause feedback that could accelerate Proton Pack overload or even cause immediate detonation.

3) Proton Beams crossing over an exact point will cause a highly dangerous situation where multiple positive-energy particles acting on a single negative-energy entity can violently detonate at a subatomic level, causing total protonic reversal (effectively, a small non-radioactive nuclear explosion.) While this is typically sub-optimal for all concerned, there are circumstances where this information may be useful to know.

The Ghost Trap is a temporary confinement unit for the incarceration and transportation of ghosts and similar entities. The device uses a series of lasers to generate a negative-energy barrier field contained in a Faraday cage to bind spirits in place; it uses an electromagnetic field generator to draw ghosts in and hold them in place while the trap is opened. The device is rolled into position at the desired area, and triggered by a stomp-on pedal: this opens the trap and activates its EMF generator. Once a spirit has been contained, the trap closes, sealing the ghost within. The Ghost Trap can contain multiple entities if necessary, but has a limited containment capability, and multiple spirits can accelerate the rate at which the trap discharges. A Ghost Trap typically discharges within twenty-four to forty-eight hours on one charge; as such it is highly recommended that the Ghost Trap be properly emptied at an Ecto-Containment Unit as soon as possible.

1) Do not look directly into the Trap. While the electromagnetic field has no serious effects on the living, the glare from the device can be temporarily blinding, which can be dangerous while a rogue ghost is active in the vicinity.

2) Do not overload the Trap. As with all ecto-containment solutions, the Ghost Trap has a finite maximum PKE capacity. This means that particularly powerful entities, entities that have not been sufficiently weakened before being put into the trap, or large numbers of entities may be capable of breaking the containment system, resulting in an explosion and releasing the ghosts into the environment.

3) Always recharge the Ghost Trap. The Ghost Trap's effective capacity is dependent on maintaining maximum charge whenever possible. Lower charge leads to lower effective capacity, which in turn leads to containment breach as above.

A PKE meter is designed to locate and trace PKE (psychokinetic energy) within an area. As most paranormal entities generate PKE signatures, this is usually an adequate method of locating them. PKE meters use an LED readout screen to indicate the overall power level of the phenomena, as well as indicating the direction of the phenomena, with its arms extending outwards to indicate when it is being pointed towards the strongest local source of emanations. The PKE meter can also be configured to track specific PKE frequencies even if they are not the strongest PKE source in the vicinity, such as those generated by specific entities (including humans.)

PKE meters measure psychokinetic energy in the area through a numeric scale, as well as displaying a visual interpretation of the frequency currently being tracked.

The PKE meter is highly sensitive and unless properly calibrated for high-energy detection can suffer overloads and breakdowns, resulting in mild electrical shocks, burns, or unit destruction.

Ecto-Goggles are designed to be worn over the user's eyes in order to let them track and study entities that are normally invisible to the naked eye. They are equipped with polarized lenses that can display a virtual translucent overlay of entities generating PKE signatures, or trails of PKE residue. Although Ecto-Goggles do not provide light amplification, a small built-in penlight is included for lighting dark spaces.

The Ecto-Goggles limit your vision to approximately sixty degrees by nature, and as such should not be worn in situations where peripheral vision is necessary. Prolonged use of Ecto-Goggles can cause eyestrain.

The Ecto-Containment Unit is a device used for the long-term containment of spectral entities. Essentially a larger version of the Ghost Trap, the Ecto-Containment Unit uses an array of negatively charged high-energy lasers to maintain an imprisoning 'cage' within a Faraday cage to keep supernatural entities within. Its strength and maximum PKE capacity is based entirely on the power available to it and the size of the containment unit. Smaller ECUs can be installed in vehicles, while larger ECUs are installed in the headquarters. Typically, a battery backup system is provided so that a power outage will not result in a containment breach (see below).

The Ghost Trap is designed specifically to be interfaced with and discharged into the ECU for long-term ghost storage. There is a simple, but precise sequence of steps involved in properly transferring a ghost from the trap to the ECU:

1. Open the loading system door. 2. Unlock the system to prepare it for loading. 3. Insert a full trap. 4. Release the trap containment cell. 5. Close the door. 6. Lock the system. 7. Set the entry grid. 8. Neutralize the field. 9. Pull the lever. 10. Wait for the indicator light to turn green, signifying the emptying of the trap.

The ECU Grid is designed with a series of analytical systems to determine the current capacity of the unit as well as a direct viewing port for face-to-face interaction with contained entities. A computerized record system is in the works for a future system design, but has not been implemented yet.

While the ECU is considered a long-term storage unit for rogue extradimensional entities, it is designed with the possible expectation that the ECU may need to be vented in a safe manner, either to release contained entities back into the environment, or to transfer entities to another containment unit or to a portal back to the spirit world for release into their natural habitat. Likewise, vehicle ECUs need to eventually be emptied into the primary containment ECU. As such, newer designs include a system that can forcibly vent some of the contents into a secondary containment system with a visible power level indicator and estimate of remaining containment time. When containment failure is imminent, or when triggered, the transfer unit proceeds to forcibly expel entities in incremental bursts.

1) Abrupt power failure WILL result in catastrophic explosion as entities attempt to escape in all directions simultaneously. As a result, newer designs include an emergency backup power system to temporarily sustain the grid in case of power failure, and will attempt to vent ghosts in a reasonably safe manner (at least in comparison to a complete explosion; the hazards of releasing a filled-to-capacity containment unit on the neighborhood are still highly significant.)

2) Servicing the interior of the ECU is to be done only by fully trained technicians wearing appropriate protective gear. A service lock is provided for this purpose. Extreme caution should be taken before and after service, including a possession check and verification of contents.

An electromagnetic field detector detects EMF fields created by ghosts, electronics, and living organisms. While the PKE meter is usually of more value, some entities do not generate useful PKE frequencies. It can indicate range and location of EMF fields.

This infrared thermometer is useful for detecting abrupt shifts in temperature – a result of ghostly presences, among other things.

The Ghostbuster Standard Uniform is a CWU-27/P Nomex flight suit, a black T-shirt worn under the flightsuit, a GB company logo patch worn on the right shoulder, a black rectangular nametag located on the left chest with the user's last name in capital red letters, grey elbow pads, a pistol belt for hooking equipment, black side-zip paratrooper boots, and black chemical gloves for handling dangerous materials.

Designed for use in areas where nuclear accelerators are frowned upon, the 'attack pack' is mostly intended for franchise operation use, and uses a rechargeable proton core that is charged at the franchise station. It provides a more powerful 'burst', but has extremely limited 'capture' capability; it is used specifically for destabilizing entities.

Another pack designed for franchises in areas where nuclear accelerators are disallowed, the 'capture pack' is designed to only generate a 'capture beam' of stabilized particles. These packs have almost no attack capability, but are ideal for directing a ghost into position for incarceration.

Certain spectral elements have been discovered to be highly vulnerable to electromagnetic fields; as such, this weapon generates a targeted pulse of electromagnetic energy via a powerful generator pack connected to a modified targeting pistol. The blast is known to temporarily stun or daze ghosts, and can be mildly unpleasant to people due to the visible flash connected to the device's triggering.

Tripod Traps are designed to create a wider containment area; in essence, a series of tripods are established in a perimeter above the target area, and can entrap ghosts within a broad area; this makes catching weak ghosts, or ghosts dispersed over a large area, more convenient.

1) Do not look into the targeting lasers. They are lasers, after all, and can cause eye damage.

2) Long-term exposure to electromagnetic fields can cause nausea and other symptoms; as such, it is unwise to stay within the range of a tripod trap setup for a prolonged period.

Referred to as the Giga-Meter for short, this device quantifies psychomagnetheric energy in raw Giga-Electron Volts.

This gas indicator is a lightweight, portable instrument used for measuring combustible gases and oxygen deficiencies; however, it also proves useful when analyzing a vicinity for traces of PKE activity, allowing one to detect ionized trace gasses that have dissipated and would otherwise be undetectable by other forms of analysis.

Ghosts and other non-reflective entities typically do not appear on film as a visible entity; bringing them into visible focus usually requires specialized equipment. The Spectronalizer allows normal chemical-film photographs to be analyzed for traces of spiritual entities.