Light beam scanning apparatus, and read-out apparatus and recording apparatus using same

A light beam scanning read-out apparatus which comprises:

• (i) a stack of a wave guide layer and an adjacent layer normally exhibiting a refractive index smaller than the refractive index of said wave guide layer and closely contacted with said wave guide layer, at least either one of said wave guide layer and said adjacent layer being constituted by a material whose refractive index changes by the application of electrical energy,
• (ii) a plurality of energy application means positioned on at least one of said wave guide layer and said adjacent layer along an optical path of a wave being guided inside of said wave guide layer,
• (iii) dielectric gratings positioned on the upper section of said adjacent layer at least over portions thereof corresponding to sections where electrical energy is applied by said energy application means,
• (iv) a light source for emitting light into said wave guide layer so that said light advances along said arrayed section where electrical energy is applied by said energy application means,
• (v) a drive circuit for sequentially and selectively energizing said plurality of energy application means to a predetermined energy application condition, and changing the refractive index of at least one of said wave guide layer and said adjacent layer so that said guided wave is radiated out of said stack by interaction with said gratings at said sections where electrical energy is applied by said energy application means,
• (vi) a sub-scanning means for moving a read-out original, said read-out original positioned so that said light radiated out of said stack impinges thereupon, with respect to said stack in a direction approximately normal to the array direction of said sections where electrical energy is applied by said energy application means, and
• (vii) a photodetector for photolectrically detecting light coming from said original.

A light beam scanning recording apparatus which comprises:

• (i) a stack of a wave guide layer and an adjacent layer normally exhibiting a refractive index smaller than the refractive index of said wave guide layer and closely contacted with said wave guide layer, at least either one of said wave guide layer and said adjacent layer being constituted by a material whose refractive index changes by the application of electrical energy,
• (ii) a plurality of energy application means positioned on at least one of said wave guide layer and said adjacent layer along an optical path of a wave being guided inside of said wave guide layer,
• (iii) dielectric gratings positioned on the upper section of said adjacent layer at least over portions thereof corresponding to section where electrical energy is applied by said energy application means,
• (iv) a light source for emitting light into said wave guide layer so that the wave advances along said arrayed sections where electrical energy is applied by said energy application means,
• (v) a drive circuit for sequentially and selectively energizing said plurality of energy application means to a predetermined energy application condition, and changing the refractive index of at least one of said wave guide layer and said adjacent layer so that said guided wave is radiated out of said stack by interaction with said dielectric gratings at said sections where energy is applied by said energy application means,
• (vi) a sub-scanning means for moving a light-sensitive material, said light-sensitive material positioned so that said wave radiated out of said stack impinges thereupon, with respect to said stack in a direction approximately normal to the array direction of said sections where electrical energy is applied by said energy application means, and
• (vii) a modulation measn for modulating said light with an image signal.