Seeing in the dark has been a long-standing dream of military and engineers. Even before the Second World War, the first devices that could "dispel the darkness" with the help of infrared radiation began to appear. Today, night vision goggles and scopes have become an integral part of the equipment of the world's armies and are even available to hobbyists. Let's take a look at how night vision technology originated and evolved from bulky prototypes of the 1930s to modern high-tech devices.
Early development and prototypes (1920s-1930s)
The first steps in creating night vision devices were made in the late 1920s. In 1929, the Hungarian physicist Kalman Tihanyi invented the first infrared television camera for the British military, which could "see" in the dark. Soon after, in the 1930s, in the United States, the famous engineer Vladimir Zworykin (RCA) developed the first commercial night vision device, an electronic device that could capture images in minimal light. However, these early systems were very cumbersome and expensive, so they were not widely used. It is important to note that the theoretical basis for these inventions was the discovery of infrared radiation in the 19th century, but it was not until the 1930s that devices that used this radiation were created.
The most important breakthrough was the creation in 1934 of the first electron-optical transducer (EOT), the heart of future night vision devices. At the Philips Research Center, a team led by Dutch scientist F. Holst designed the so-called "Holst glass," an electronic device that converted infrared (thermal) radiation into a visible image. This early CCD was far from perfect: it produced low-quality images, required the photocathode to be cooled to +40 °C due to high noise levels, and was enormously large and heavy. Despite its shortcomings, the "Holst glass" demonstrated the fundamental possibility of seeing in the dark and effectively launched the era of night optics.
World War II: the birth of night vision on the battlefield
*A German StG-44 assault rifle with a Vampir infrared sight from World War II.* During World War II, night vision technology was introduced to the battlefield on a large scale for the first time. Germany became a pioneer in this field: in 1939, the Wehrmacht began to introduce night vision devices for tanks and infantry. Since 1943, Panther tanks have been testing Nachtjäger systems with 30-cm infrared spotlights and receivers that allowed them to see at night at a distance of up to ~600 meters. By the end of the war, about 60 Panther tanks were equipped with systems such as the FG 1250 (Sparrow Hawk). For the infantry, a portable infrared system codenamed "Vampir" was developed, which was mounted on the Sturmgewehr 44 assault rifle. These devices belonged to the so-called "zero" generation of night optics - they amplified the available light by about 1000 times, but required active illumination with an infrared spotlight. Such spotlights were so large and visible that they sometimes had to be mounted on trucks, which disguised users. Nevertheless, German night sights became a formidable novelty: there are reports that on the Eastern Front, Soviet troops even launched a night tank attack to blind the Germans equipped with night vision devices.
At the same time, the Allies were developing their own night sights. In 1944, the US Army first used the M1 and M3 infrared sights, known as "sniperscope" or "snooperscope". American snipers used them at the end of World War II in the Pacific Theater and later in the Korean War. These devices were also active - they had their own infrared illumination with a large searchlight. They allowed for targeted fire at night, although they remained bulky and had a limited range. Despite the shortcomings, the experience of World War II proved the fundamental value of night vision for the military.
The Cold War and the First Generation of the NSA
After the war, development continued at an accelerated pace on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Engineers sought to increase the sensitivity and reduce the size of night vision devices. Improvements in the design of electron-optical transducers made it possible to use an electrostatic field to focus electrons instead of direct transfer (as in the "Holst glass"). This significantly increased the efficiency of light conversion. The USSR went its own way and created multi-cascade CCDs, which consisted of several image intensifiers connected in series. Soviet-made cascade devices were supplied to the army until the 1980s, although more advanced technologies were emerging abroad at the time.
The transition from active to passive IR devices made a real revolution. The first generation of passive night vision devices (Gen 1) appeared in the mid-1960s and did not require any searchlight to operate. Such PNVs could amplify the weak natural light of the stars and moon by a factor of ~1000 and form a visible image from it. They were first massively used by the Americans in the Vietnam War. The famous Starlight compact sight (AN/PVS-2) allowed soldiers to see the enemy in the night jungle, where the level of illumination was minimal. However, the Gen-1 had significant drawbacks. The image was grainy, with distortions at the edges ("fisheye effect"), and the devices themselves remained quite large and heavy. In addition, to work in complete darkness, the Gen 1 still needed infrared illumination to disguise the shooter. The first generation's lifespan was also limited - about 1,500 hours of EOP operation.
In the late 1960s and 1970s, engineers partially solved the problems of Gen 1. Improved Gen 1+ tubes appeared, with reduced edge distortion and slightly increased sensitivity. However, the real qualitative leap came with the birth of the second generation of night optics.
Second generation: microchannel amplifiers
The second generation (Gen 2) of night vision devices appeared in the 1970s and was based on new achievements in vacuum electronics. The main innovation was the use of a special microchannel plate in the EOP. This is a thin glass plate permeated with millions of microchannels that act as an avalanche amplifier for electrons. As a result, the light sensitivity and image brightness increased by orders of magnitude. Gen 2 devices could already amplify light by about 20,000 times, providing a much brighter and clearer picture even in very low light. The resolution has also improved significantly - up to ~45-50 lines/mm in the basic versions. In addition, the Gen 2's lifespan has increased to 2500-5000 hours, which is almost three times longer than Gen 1.
Thanks to the new second-generation EOPs, night vision devices have become more compact and reliable. At this time, the well-known night vision goggles for pilots and infantry appeared. It was in the 1970s that thermal imagers, an alternative night vision technology, began to be widely used. Unlike traditional night vision goggles, which amplify light reflected from objects, thermal imagers detect the actual thermal (infrared) radiation of targets. The first generations of thermal imaging scopes were expensive and were installed mainly on vehicles, but the technology has improved over time. We will mention it separately below. In the meantime, the development of traditional EOSs continued to advance to the third generation.
The third generation: new materials and mass adoption
Third-generation night vision devices (Gen 3) appeared in the 1980s and became the "gold standard" in military night optics. The key difference between Gen 3 is the use of a new photocathode material. Instead of the traditional silver-cesium coating (as in Gen 1/2), gallium arsenide (GaAs) was used. The GaAs-based photocathode has a much higher quantum efficiency, meaning it emits more electrons when absorbing photons. As a result, the sensitivity of the system was increased by about ten times, and the image brightness was enhanced by up to 30,000-50,000 times. Even in complete darkness, with only starlight, Gen 3 produces a fairly contrasting "green" image. Why green? Because the human eye is best able to distinguish shades of green, so a green screen is less tiring on the eyes and provides good contrast.
The third generation of PNBs is characterized not only by its sensitivity but also by its durability - the tube's service life has increased to 10,000 hours. To extend the service life of the photocathode, manufacturers have begun to apply a thin ion-barrier film to the microchannel plate, which protects the cathode from degradation. This film somewhat reduces the efficiency of the device (some electrons are lost on it, adding noise), but Gen 3 still produces a better image than Gen 2 and lasts much longer. It was the third-generation devices such as the AN/PVS-7, AN/PVS-14, etc. that were widely used by NATO armies in the 1990s and 2000s, in particular during night operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. By the early 1990s, U.S. troops were so superior to potential enemies in night vision that during the 1991 Gulf War, a U.S. Army general noted that night optics had become their greatest tactical advantage. The phrase "We own the night" aptly reflected the state of affairs at the time.
Marketing "fourth generation" and modern improvements
You often hear about fourth-generation night vision devices (Gen 4). In fact, there is no officially **fourth generation**. This term appeared as an advertising ploy in the late 1990s, when manufacturers announced "Gen 4" for new modernized EOPs. However, experts from the U.S. Army's Weapons Quality Control Division refused to recognize this category. It turned out that they were talking about improved tubes of the same third generation, from which the ion barrier film was removed and **Gated** technology (fast electronic gating) was added. Thefilmless Gen 3 tubes produced even brighter images in extremely low light, but they also had a disadvantage: the life of such tubes was reduced to ~1000 hours. Although the name Gen 4 is still used unofficially, it is essentially just an improved Gen 3. The Filmless and Auto-Gating technologies introduced in the 2000s were the biggest breakthrough in the development of night optics in recent decades. They provide better performance in near-total darkness and quicker adaptation to lighting changes (e.g., flashes). Modern "tubes" also often have a different shade of the screen - not green, but white-silver (the so-called white phosphor, trade names *Ghost*, *Onyx*, etc.), which many users consider more contrast.
Today, the military has a wide variety of night vision devices at its disposal. For example, monoculars of the AN/PVS-14 type are widely used - compact, universal Gen 3 devices that can be mounted on a helmet or weapon. The Ukrainian army, in particular, has received thousands of these devices from Western partners to equip its soldiers. The most advanced equipment is also available for special forces, such as GPNVG-18 panoramic goggles from L3Harris. These "four-eye" glasses contain four EOFs and give the soldier a panoramic viewing angle of ~97° instead of ~40° for standard two-tube devices - a huge advantage in urban or special operations. Digital night vision devices based on sensitive CMOS sensors are also gaining popularity. Digital night vision is still somewhat inferior to classic CCDs in terms of sensitivity and resolution, but it has its advantages: resistance to backlighting, video recording, and a lower price.
Thermal imagers and other technologies
The development of thermal imaging technology, another area of night vision, should be noted separately. Thermal imaging, unlike EOI, does not depend on external light, but reacts to the intrinsic heat of objects. All living things, machines, or even newly used equipment emit in the infrared spectrum. The thermal imager detects these "warm" areas and builds an image based on the temperature difference. The first working models of thermal imagers appeared in the 1960s, initially as large devices for tanks and helicopters. In the 1970s and 1980s, the technology was rapidly improving, and the size of the sensors was decreasing. Already during Operation Desert Storm (1991), many American tanks and aircraft were equipped with thermal imagers, which made it possible to detect targets even in complete darkness or desert dust. Modern portable thermal imagers have also become available to infantry, ranging from binoculars to scopes. Their advantage is working in absolute darkness (for example, in a locked room or cave), where even the most sensitive passive EW sensor goes blind without any light source. The disadvantage of thermal imagers is a slightly lower image resolution and the inability to see through glass (ordinary glass is impervious to infrared rays). For this reason, both technologies complement each other in the military. Moreover, **hybrid systems** combining intense (passive) and thermal imaging are being developed. For example, the American *ENVG* (Enhanced Night Vision Goggle) projects a thermal image over "normal" night vision, significantly increasing the soldier's awareness on the battlefield.
Thus, night vision technology has come a long way over the past 90 years. From laboratory experiments to massive use in military conflicts; from spotting scopes on trucks to compact goggles that fit on a helmet. Modern night vision devices are capable of amplifying light tens of thousands of times and significantly expanding human capabilities in the dark. For the military, this means an advantage over the enemy at night, and for hunters and rescuers, it is an invaluable tool in their work. And progress continues: scientists around the world are working on even more sensitive sensors, new materials, and intelligent image processing systems. And although the phrase "seeing like daylight at night" is still hyperbole, every year the night becomes less and less dark for humans.
Seeing in the dark has been a long-standing dream of military and engineers. Even before the Second World War, the first devices that could "dispel the darkness" with the help of infrared radiation began to appear. Today, night vision goggles and scopes have become an integral part of the equipment of the world's armies and are even available to hobbyists. Let's take a look at how night vision technology originated and evolved from bulky prototypes of the 1930s to modern high-tech devices.
Early development and prototypes (1920s-1930s)
The first steps in creating night vision devices were made in the late 1920s. In 1929, the Hungarian physicist Kalman Tihanyi invented the first infrared television camera for the British military, which could "see" in the dark. Soon after, in the 1930s, in the United States, the famous engineer Vladimir Zworykin (RCA) developed the first commercial night vision device, an electronic device that could capture images in minimal light. However, these early systems were very cumbersome and expensive, so they were not widely used. It is important to note that the theoretical basis for these inventions was the discovery of infrared radiation in the 19th century, but it was not until the 1930s that devices that used this radiation were created.
The most important breakthrough was the creation in 1934 of the first electron-optical transducer (EOT), the heart of future night vision devices. At the Philips Research Center, a team led by Dutch scientist F. Holst designed the so-called "Holst glass," an electronic device that converted infrared (thermal) radiation into a visible image. This early CCD was far from perfect: it produced low-quality images, required the photocathode to be cooled to +40 °C due to high noise levels, and was enormously large and heavy. Despite its shortcomings, the "Holst glass" demonstrated the fundamental possibility of seeing in the dark and effectively launched the era of night optics.
World War II: the birth of night vision on the battlefield
*A German StG-44 assault rifle with a Vampir infrared sight from World War II.* During World War II, night vision technology was introduced to the battlefield on a large scale for the first time. Germany became a pioneer in this field: in 1939, the Wehrmacht began to introduce night vision devices for tanks and infantry. Since 1943, Panther tanks have been testing Nachtjäger systems with 30-cm infrared spotlights and receivers that allowed them to see at night at a distance of up to ~600 meters. By the end of the war, about 60 Panther tanks were equipped with systems such as the FG 1250 (Sparrow Hawk). For the infantry, a portable infrared system codenamed "Vampir" was developed, which was mounted on the Sturmgewehr 44 assault rifle. These devices belonged to the so-called "zero" generation of night optics - they amplified the available light by about 1000 times, but required active illumination with an infrared spotlight. Such spotlights were so large and visible that they sometimes had to be mounted on trucks, which disguised users. Nevertheless, German night sights became a formidable novelty: there are reports that on the Eastern Front, Soviet troops even launched a night tank attack to blind the Germans equipped with night vision devices.
At the same time, the Allies were developing their own night sights. In 1944, the US Army first used the M1 and M3 infrared sights, known as "sniperscope" or "snooperscope". American snipers used them at the end of World War II in the Pacific Theater and later in the Korean War. These devices were also active - they had their own infrared illumination with a large searchlight. They allowed for targeted fire at night, although they remained bulky and had a limited range. Despite the shortcomings, the experience of World War II proved the fundamental value of night vision for the military.
The Cold War and the First Generation of the NSA
After the war, development continued at an accelerated pace on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Engineers sought to increase the sensitivity and reduce the size of night vision devices. Improvements in the design of electron-optical transducers made it possible to use an electrostatic field to focus electrons instead of direct transfer (as in the "Holst glass"). This significantly increased the efficiency of light conversion. The USSR went its own way and created multi-cascade CCDs, which consisted of several image intensifiers connected in series. Soviet-made cascade devices were supplied to the army until the 1980s, although more advanced technologies were emerging abroad at the time.
The transition from active to passive IR devices made a real revolution. The first generation of passive night vision devices (Gen 1) appeared in the mid-1960s and did not require any searchlight to operate. Such PNVs could amplify the weak natural light of the stars and moon by a factor of ~1000 and form a visible image from it. They were first massively used by the Americans in the Vietnam War. The famous Starlight compact sight (AN/PVS-2) allowed soldiers to see the enemy in the night jungle, where the level of illumination was minimal. However, the Gen-1 had significant drawbacks. The image was grainy, with distortions at the edges ("fisheye effect"), and the devices themselves remained quite large and heavy. In addition, to work in complete darkness, the Gen 1 still needed infrared illumination to disguise the shooter. The first generation's lifespan was also limited - about 1,500 hours of EOP operation.
In the late 1960s and 1970s, engineers partially solved the problems of Gen 1. Improved Gen 1+ tubes appeared, with reduced edge distortion and slightly increased sensitivity. However, the real qualitative leap came with the birth of the second generation of night optics.
Second generation: microchannel amplifiers
The second generation (Gen 2) of night vision devices appeared in the 1970s and was based on new achievements in vacuum electronics. The main innovation was the use of a special microchannel plate in the EOP. This is a thin glass plate permeated with millions of microchannels that act as an avalanche amplifier for electrons. As a result, the light sensitivity and image brightness increased by orders of magnitude. Gen 2 devices could already amplify light by about 20,000 times, providing a much brighter and clearer picture even in very low light. The resolution has also improved significantly - up to ~45-50 lines/mm in the basic versions. In addition, the Gen 2's lifespan has increased to 2500-5000 hours, which is almost three times longer than Gen 1.
Thanks to the new second-generation EOPs, night vision devices have become more compact and reliable. At this time, the well-known night vision goggles for pilots and infantry appeared. It was in the 1970s that thermal imagers, an alternative night vision technology, began to be widely used. Unlike traditional night vision goggles, which amplify light reflected from objects, thermal imagers detect the actual thermal (infrared) radiation of targets. The first generations of thermal imaging scopes were expensive and were installed mainly on vehicles, but the technology has improved over time. We will mention it separately below. In the meantime, the development of traditional EOSs continued to advance to the third generation.
The third generation: new materials and mass adoption
Third-generation night vision devices (Gen 3) appeared in the 1980s and became the "gold standard" in military night optics. The key difference between Gen 3 is the use of a new photocathode material. Instead of the traditional silver-cesium coating (as in Gen 1/2), gallium arsenide (GaAs) was used. The GaAs-based photocathode has a much higher quantum efficiency, meaning it emits more electrons when absorbing photons. As a result, the sensitivity of the system was increased by about ten times, and the image brightness was enhanced by up to 30,000-50,000 times. Even in complete darkness, with only starlight, Gen 3 produces a fairly contrasting "green" image. Why green? Because the human eye is best able to distinguish shades of green, so a green screen is less tiring on the eyes and provides good contrast.
The third generation of PNBs is characterized not only by its sensitivity but also by its durability - the tube's service life has increased to 10,000 hours. To extend the service life of the photocathode, manufacturers have begun to apply a thin ion-barrier film to the microchannel plate, which protects the cathode from degradation. This film somewhat reduces the efficiency of the device (some electrons are lost on it, adding noise), but Gen 3 still produces a better image than Gen 2 and lasts much longer. It was the third-generation devices such as the AN/PVS-7, AN/PVS-14, etc. that were widely used by NATO armies in the 1990s and 2000s, in particular during night operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. By the early 1990s, U.S. troops were so superior to potential enemies in night vision that during the 1991 Gulf War, a U.S. Army general noted that night optics had become their greatest tactical advantage. The phrase "We own the night" aptly reflected the state of affairs at the time.
Marketing "fourth generation" and modern improvements
You often hear about fourth-generation night vision devices (Gen 4). In fact, there is no officially **fourth generation**. This term appeared as an advertising ploy in the late 1990s, when manufacturers announced "Gen 4" for new modernized EOPs. However, experts from the U.S. Army's Weapons Quality Control Division refused to recognize this category. It turned out that they were talking about improved tubes of the same third generation, from which the ion barrier film was removed and **Gated** technology (fast electronic gating) was added. Thefilmless Gen 3 tubes produced even brighter images in extremely low light, but they also had a disadvantage: the life of such tubes was reduced to ~1000 hours. Although the name Gen 4 is still used unofficially, it is essentially just an improved Gen 3. The Filmless and Auto-Gating technologies introduced in the 2000s were the biggest breakthrough in the development of night optics in recent decades. They provide better performance in near-total darkness and quicker adaptation to lighting changes (e.g., flashes). Modern "tubes" also often have a different shade of the screen - not green, but white-silver (the so-called white phosphor, trade names *Ghost*, *Onyx*, etc.), which many users consider more contrast.
Today, the military has a wide variety of night vision devices at its disposal. For example, monoculars of the AN/PVS-14 type are widely used - compact, universal Gen 3 devices that can be mounted on a helmet or weapon. The Ukrainian army, in particular, has received thousands of these devices from Western partners to equip its soldiers. The most advanced equipment is also available for special forces, such as GPNVG-18 panoramic goggles from L3Harris. These "four-eye" glasses contain four EOFs and give the soldier a panoramic viewing angle of ~97° instead of ~40° for standard two-tube devices - a huge advantage in urban or special operations. Digital night vision devices based on sensitive CMOS sensors are also gaining popularity. Digital night vision is still somewhat inferior to classic CCDs in terms of sensitivity and resolution, but it has its advantages: resistance to backlighting, video recording, and a lower price.
Thermal imagers and other technologies
The development of thermal imaging technology, another area of night vision, should be noted separately. Thermal imaging, unlike EOI, does not depend on external light, but reacts to the intrinsic heat of objects. All living things, machines, or even newly used equipment emit in the infrared spectrum. The thermal imager detects these "warm" areas and builds an image based on the temperature difference. The first working models of thermal imagers appeared in the 1960s, initially as large devices for tanks and helicopters. In the 1970s and 1980s, the technology was rapidly improving, and the size of the sensors was decreasing. Already during Operation Desert Storm (1991), many American tanks and aircraft were equipped with thermal imagers, which made it possible to detect targets even in complete darkness or desert dust. Modern portable thermal imagers have also become available to infantry, ranging from binoculars to scopes. Their advantage is working in absolute darkness (for example, in a locked room or cave), where even the most sensitive passive EW sensor goes blind without any light source. The disadvantage of thermal imagers is a slightly lower image resolution and the inability to see through glass (ordinary glass is impervious to infrared rays). For this reason, both technologies complement each other in the military. Moreover, **hybrid systems** combining intense (passive) and thermal imaging are being developed. For example, the American *ENVG* (Enhanced Night Vision Goggle) projects a thermal image over "normal" night vision, significantly increasing the soldier's awareness on the battlefield.
Thus, night vision technology has come a long way over the past 90 years. From laboratory experiments to massive use in military conflicts; from spotting scopes on trucks to compact goggles that fit on a helmet. Modern night vision devices are capable of amplifying light tens of thousands of times and significantly expanding human capabilities in the dark. For the military, this means an advantage over the enemy at night, and for hunters and rescuers, it is an invaluable tool in their work. And progress continues: scientists around the world are working on even more sensitive sensors, new materials, and intelligent image processing systems. And although the phrase "seeing like daylight at night" is still hyperbole, every year the night becomes less and less dark for humans.
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History of the creation and development of night vision technology