Pulsed supercontinuum source of variable pulse duration

A supercontinuum source capable of emitting waves between the infrared range and the ultraviolet range, includes a pulsed laser source (12) capable of generating a laser beam and a non-linear microstructured optical fibre (14) capable of receiving the laser beam, in such a way that the supercontinuum source is capable of generating a beam (F′) over a pulse duration (T′), characterized in that the supercontinuum source includes elements for varying the pulse duration.