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Fluorescence imaging is used widely in microscopy and macroscopic imaging applications for fields ranging from biomedicine to materials science. A critical component for any fluorescence imaging system is the excitation source. Traditionally, wide-field systems use filtered thermal or arc-generated white light sources, while point scanning confocal microscope systems require spatially coherent (point-like) laser sources. Unfortunately, the limited range of visible wavelengths available from conventional laser sources constrains the design and usefulness of fluorescent probes in confocal microscopy. A'hands-off'laser-like source, electronically tunable across the visible spectrum, would be invaluable for fluorescence imaging and provide new opportunities, eg automated excitation fingerprinting and in situ measurement of excitation cross-sections. Yet more information can be obtained using fluorescence lifetime …