| 摘要 |
<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an optical scanner, which is compact, can suppress noise light rays regardless to the scanning position of scanning light and can stably suppress occurrence of ghost light rays, and to provide an image forming apparatus and a laser drawing device. Ž<P>SOLUTION: The optical scanner includes: a light source unit that outputs a luminous flux composed of linearly polarized light; a deflector 14 that deflects the luminous flux from the light source unit; and a scanning optical system that includes a polarization switching means composed of liquid crystal elements 411, 412, alternately switching between (1) a first polarized state in which an electric field vector is parallel to the deflection plane and (2) a second polarized state in which an electric field vector varies in accordance with the deflection angle, each time of scanning of the luminous flux deflected by the deflector, and polarization splitting means 161, 162 changing the exiting direction of the luminous flux in accordance with the polarization state, and that individually condenses the luminous flux deflected by the deflector 14 onto a corresponding surface to be scanned. Ž<P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT Ž
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