An apparatus for measuring spectral components of Raman-scattered light emitted by target. The apparatus includes: pulsed laser light source to emit light; probe optics to direct light towards target and to collect light scattered by target; optical spectrometer including: input divider to divide collected light into first and second light beams; first spectrograph including input apertures for receiving said light beams and optical disperser to disperse said light beams; second spectrograph comprising input apertures and output apertures; and spatial light modulator to receive dispersed first and second light beams and to selectively provide at least part of at least one of dispersed first and second light beams to input aperture of second spectrograph which reverses dispersion of light beam and focuses light beam to output aperture; detector element to measure spectral components of light beam exiting output aperture. Optical spectrometer further includes delay line(s) line for delaying light beam(s).

A digital flashlamp controller, a flashlamp control system and a method of controlling a flashlamp bulb employing digital control electronics are provided herein. In one embodiment, the digital flashlamp controller includes: (1) a trigger interface configured to provide firing signals to control a trigger element for a flashlamp bulb and (2) digital electronics configured to generate the firing signals and control multiple pulsing of the flashlamp bulb.

A filter for removing coherent radiation from a source in a field of view, substantially independent of the size of the source, comprises a first reticle 22 located in the path of received light 21, a first lens 23 producing an optical transform of the first reticle 22 at a second reticle 24 located in the image plane of the first lens 23, a second lens 25 producing an optical transform of the second reticle 24 and a third reticle 26 located in the image plane of the second lens 25. The arrangement is such that the spatial transmittance of the third reticle 26 is selected to block at least part of the diffracted image of the first reticle 22 produced in the image plane of the second lens 25 and characteristic of the coherent radiation. Preferably the optical transforms are Fourier Transforms. A monochromatic coherent source in the field of view produces a pattern of diffracted energy in the image plane of the second lens which is independent of the size of the source. Thus, by providing a suitable reticle 26 in the image plane of the second lens light from a coherent source in the field of view can be blocked while polychromatic light is transmitted. The first and second reticles may be periodic picket-fence reticles or different spatial frequencies may be used for the first and third reticles so as to vary the stop-band characteristics of the filter.

A light modulation device and a single-channel spectrum detection system are provided. The light modulation device includes: a light guide plate; a dispersing component configured to disperse received light into light of different wavelengths and to diffract the light of different wavelengths into the light guide plate at different angles; and a dynamic filtering component configured to prevent light of a selected wavelength in the light guide plate from entering the dynamic filtering component such that the light of the selected wavelength emits out from the light guide plate, and to make light of non-selected wavelengths in the light guide plate enter the dynamic filtering component such that the light of the non-selected wavelengths is filtered out from the light guide plate.

An optical property measurement apparatus includes a pulse formation unit, a waveform measurement unit, and an optical system. The pulse formation unit is capable of changing a temporal waveform of pulsed light in accordance with a type of optical property to be measured. The waveform measurement unit measures a temporal waveform of the pulsed light output from a measurement object after being incident on the measurement object. The optical system has an attenuation unit with an attenuation rate with respect to one wavelength component constituting the pulsed light larger than an attenuation rate with respect to another wavelength component constituting the pulsed light. The optical system is capable of switching between a first state in which the attenuation unit is arranged on an optical path of the pulsed light output from the measurement object and a second state in which the attenuation unit is not arranged on the optical path.

An apparatus for measuring spectral components of Raman-scattered light emitted by target. The apparatus includes: pulsed laser light source to emit light; probe optics to direct light towards target and to collect light scattered by target; optical spectrometer including: input divider to divide collected light into first and second light beams; first spectrograph including input apertures for receiving said light beams and optical disperser to disperse said light beams; second spectrograph comprising input apertures and output apertures; and spatial light modulator to receive dispersed first and second light beams and to selectively provide at least part of at least one of dispersed first and second light beams to input aperture of second spectrograph which reverses dispersion of light beam and focuses light beam to output aperture; detector element to measure spectral components of light beam exiting output aperture. Optical spectrometer further includes delay line(s) line for delaying light beam(s).

An optical filter includes a filter array including filters two-dimensionally arrayed and a band-pass filter. The filters includes first and second filters. A transmission spectrum of each of the first and second filters has local maximum values of transmittance at three or more wavelengths included in a first wavelength region. The band-pass filter passes light in a second wavelength region including two or more wavelengths of the three or more wavelengths and not including one or more wavelengths of the three or more wavelengths. The filter array and the band-pass filter are disposed so that (a) the band-pass filter is located on an optical path of light that passes through the first and second filters or (b) the first and second filters are located on an optical path of light that passes through the band-pass filter.

A light detecting device includes: a filter array including filters two-dimensionally arrayed and an image sensor including light detection elements. Each of first and second filters included in the filters includes a first reflective layer, a second reflective layer, and an intermediate layer therebetween and has a resonance structure having resonant modes whose orders are different from each other. A refractive index and/or a thickness of the intermediate layer in the first and second filters is different depending on the filter. A transmission spectrum of each of the first and second filters has local maximum value of transmittance at each of wavelengths included in a wavelength region, and the wavelengths correspond to the resonant modes, respectively. The image sensor is disposed at a position where the image senor receives passing light that passes through the filter array, to detect components in the wavelengths included in the passing light.

A temporal-spectral multiplexing sensor for simultaneous or near simultaneous spatial-temporal-spectral analysis of an incoming optical radiation field. A spectral encoder produces a time series of spectrally encoded optical images at a high sampling rate. A series of full panchromatic spectrally encoded optical images are collected at a rate similar to the sampling rate. A detector records at least one spatial region of the spectrally encoded optical image. A processor is configured to process two series of spectrally encoded optical images to produce an artifact-free spectral image. The processing includes using the panchromatic images to normalize the spectrally encoded images, and decoding the normalized encoded images to produce high fidelity spectral signatures, free of temporal artifacts due to fluctuations at frequencies slower than the sampling rate for polychromatic images.

A temporal-spectral multiplexing sensor for simultaneous or near simultaneous spatial-temporal-spectral analysis of an incoming optical radiation field. A spectral encoder produces a time series of spectrally encoded optical images at a high sampling rate. A series of full panchromatic spectrally encoded optical images are collected at a rate similar to the sampling rate. A detector records at least one spatial region of the spectrally encoded optical image. A processor is configured to process two series of spectrally encoded optical images to produce an artifact-free spectral image. The processing includes using the panchromatic images to normalize the spectrally encoded images, and decoding the normalized encoded images to produce high fidelity spectral signatures, free of temporal artifacts due to fluctuations at frequencies slower than the sampling rate for polychromatic images.