21-09-2008, 10:00 AM
The first thing you probably think of when you see the words night vision is a spy or action movie you've seen, in which someone straps on a pair of night-vision goggles to find someone else in a dark building on a moonless night. And you may have wondered "Do those things really work? Can you actually see in the dark?"
The answer is most definitely yes. With the proper night-vision equipment, you can see a person standing over 200 yards (183 m) away on a moonless, cloudy night! Night vision can work in two very different ways, depending on the technology used.
Image enhancement - This works by collecting the tiny amounts of light, including the lower portion of the infrared light spectrum, that are present but may be imperceptible to our eyes, and amplifying it to the point that we can easily observe the image.
Thermal imaging - This technology operates by capturing the upper portion of the infrared light spectrum, which is emitted as heat by objects instead of simply reflected as light.
Hotter objects, such as warm bodies, emit more of this light than cooler objects like trees or buildings.
The Micro Channel Plates are applicable only to image enhancement type of night vision equipments.
The original purpose of night vision was to locate enemy targets at night. Added advantages provided by the micro channel plate technology has helped in constructing night vision equipments with reduced size, weight and improved performance characteristics compared to conventional cascade tube based image intensifiers.
New generation image intensifier tubes have improved gains, and yet are one-tenth the size and one-third the cost of earlier tubes. The application of micro channel plates in night vision equipments will certainly help to improve the chances of safety and security provided to the user...
