VARIABLE WAVELENGTH LIGHT SOURCE

摘要

A variable wavelength light source in which the cavity length of an outer resonator comprising a semiconductor laser and a diffraction grating is varied by means of a driver controlled by a drive control section so as to vary the wavelength of emission light continuously or intermittently from a desired start wavelength to a stop wavelength. A point wavelength information setting section sets point wavelength information representative of the positional information about the driver corresponding to the cavity length of the outer resonator for the start wavelength, the stop wavelength and the wavelengths determined by partitioning the section between the start and stop wavelengths by arbitrary steps. An emission wavelength information collecting section collects emission wavelength information corresponding to the wavelength of the light emitted from the variable wavelength light source. An agreement judging section judges whether emission wavelength information collected by the emission wavelength information collecting means agrees with the point wavelength information set by the point wavelength information setting means. Upon receiving the result of the judgment that the emission wavelength information agrees with the point wavelength information from the agreement judging section, an information output section outputs specified information.