Photosensitive fluorescent lifetime measuring apparatus

Claim 1

A COMBINATION OF APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING ACCURATE FLUORESCENT LIFETIME MEASUREMENTS ON A MATERIAL THAT FLUORESCES IN RESPONSE TO APPLIED ENERGY, SAID COMBINATION COMPRISING, A SPECIMEN OF FLUORESCENT MATERIAL, MEANS FOR APPLYING SUCCESSIVELY OCCURRING SHORT-DURATION PULSES OF EXCITING ENERGY TO SAID SPECIMEN, SAID SPECIMEN RESPONDING TO SAID EXCITING ENERGY BY EMITTING CORRESPONDING PHOTON PULSES OF FLUORESCENT LIGHT THAT DECAY IN AN EXPONENTIAL MANNER AT THE TERMINATION OF EACH EXCITING ENERGY PULSE, MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE FLUORESCENT PHOTON EMISSION OF SAID SPECIMEN FOR PRODUCING DURING EACH FLUORESCENT LIFETIME OF THE SUCCESSIVE EXCITED SPECIMEN AS SERIES OF PHOTOELECTRON PULSES CORRESPONDING TO THE PHOTON EMISSION OF THE SPECIMEN, DISPLAY MEANS FOR PRESENTING A VISUAL LIGHT DISPLAY OF SAID PHOTOELECTRON PULSES DURING EACH FLUORESCENT DECAY AND FOR CAUSING THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE SUCCESSIVE DISPLAYS TO OCCUR AT DIFFERENT TIMES IN THE RESPECTIVE SUCCESSIVELY OCCURRING FLUORESCENT LIFETIMES, WHEREBY THE SUCCESSIVELY DISPLAYED PHOTOELECTRON PULSES ARE DRIFTED IN POSITION WITH RESPECT TO THE DISPLAY MEANS, LIGHT DETECTING AND SIGNAL PRODUCING MEANS STATIONARY WITH RESPECT TO SAID DISPLAY MEANS FOR RESPONDING TO THE LIGHT FROM ONLY A NORROW FIXED AREA OF THE DISPLAY MEANS ON WHICH THE DRIFTING PHOTOELECTRON PULSES ARE DISPLAYED AND FOR PRODUCING AN ELECTRICAL SIGNAL IN RESPONSE THERETO, SAID LIGHT DETECTING AND SIGNAL PRODUCING MEANS POSSESSING A LONG TIME CONSTANT CHARACTERISTIC TO PRODUCE AN INTEGRATED OUTPUT ELECTRICAL SIGNAL IN RESPONSE TO INCIDENT PHOTONS, AND UTILIZATION MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE INPUT SIGNAL OF THE LIGHT DETECTING AND SIGNAL PRODUCING MEANS.