Patent ID: 6897953

Claim:
A fluorescence measuring method comprising: a pumping step of irradiating a sample with pulsed pumping light; a light-detecting step of detecting fluorescence released from said sample pumped with said pumping light; and a data processing step of subjecting a time waveform of fluorescence detected by said light-detecting step to a data analysis including a fitting calculation in a fitting range serving as a predetermined time range fixedly set for said time waveform of fluorescence so as to compute waveform data, said time waveform of fluorescence having a fluorescence peak; wherein said data processing step comprises arranging a predetermined time waveform of pumping light having a pumping light peak and said time waveform of fluorescence having said fluorescence peak on a time axis used for said fitting calculation such that said fluorescence peak is placed at an initial position on said time axis that is a predetermined time width earlier or later than a time position substantially coinciding with said pumping light peak, and carrying out a fitting calculation at each of a plurality of different time positions on said time axis while moving one of (a) said time waveform of fluorescence and said fitting range, or (b) said time waveform of pumping light, with respect to said time axis, from a start position to an end position on said time axis, said end position being located on a side of said time position where said fluorescence peak substantially coincides with said pumping light peak that is opposite that of the side of said time position where said start position is located, and employing a waveform data item selected according to a predetermined selection criterion from a plurality of waveform data items respectively computed in said fitting calculations as final measurement waveform data.