Color night vision correlation imaging without an infrared focal plane array

Abstract

Night vision is the ability to see in low-light conditions. However, conventional night vision imaging technology is limited by the requisite high-performance infrared focal plane array. In this article, we propose a novel scheme of color night vision imaging without the use of an infrared focal plane array. In the experimental device, the two-wavelength infrared laser beam reflected by the target is modulated by a spatial light modulator, and the output light is detected by a photomultiplier tube. Two infrared night vision images are reconstructed by measuring the second-order intensity correlation function between two light fields. Thus, the processing mode of optical electric detection in conventional night vision imaging is transformed into the processing mode of light field control. Furthermore, two gray images with different spectra are processed to form a color night vision image. We show that a high-quality color night vision image can be obtained by this method.