Conical diffraction grazing incidence spectrometer and diffraction grating for use in the spectrometer

A conical diffraction grazing incidence spectroscope for performing wavelength scanning by rotating a diffraction grating about an is set parallel to grooves in a grazing surface of the grating comprising:

• a light source,
• an entrance slit,
• a convergent light generating means which causes divergent light from the light source through the entrance slit to be converted into convergent light,
• a diffraction grating positioned on an optical path from the light source to a focal point of the convergent light, and
• an exit slit,
• wherein the center of the entrance slit, the center of the exit slit, the center of the convergent light generating means and the center of the diffraction grating lie in the same plane, and
• wherein the grooves in the diffraction grating are either non-uniformly spaced or curved, both non-uniformly spaced and curved, or asymmetric in an axial direction normal to the direction of the grooves on the diffraction grazing surface at the center of the diffraction grating.