Patent ID: 7215421
Filing Date: 2007-05-08
Classification: G01J,G01N

Abstract:
1. A fluorescence lifetime measurement apparatus comprising: a light source irradiating a specimen with excitation light; a first controller controlling a total gate length that is a total time window during which a number of fluorescence photons emitted from the specimen excited by the excitation light is measured; a second controller controlling a start gate length of a plurality of gate lengths into which the total gate length is divided, the start gate length being a time window whose start time is when measurement of the number of fluorescence photons starts; a measurer measuring the number of fluorescence photons for each of the gate lengths; a processor calculating a fluorescence lifetime the specimen based on the start gate length and the number of fluorescence photons measured by the measurer; and a third controller causing, when the fluorescence lifetime does not satisfy a predetermined condition, the first controller and the second controller to change the start gate length and the total gate length.