Only a small number of companies make night vision image intensifier tubes. Many more companies build complete devices (housings, optics, electronics) around tubes they buy in. This page covers the tube makers: their history, where they produce and what they make today. For formats see tube formats and compatibility; for dating tubes see production years and contracts. All pages: night vision database.
How to read this page: facts confirmed by a manufacturer, a government document or trade press are stated plainly. Facts that rest only on an encyclopedia, community wiki or similar source are marked (secondary source). Points we could not confirm are either left out or marked (not confirmed).
At a glance
| Manufacturer | Country | Tube production | Status (November 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| L3Harris Technologies | USA | Tempe, Arizona | Active; former Litton line |
| Elbit Systems of America | USA | Roanoke County, Virginia | Active; former ITT line; parent rebranded Twenty-Six Defense in 2026 |
| Exosens (Photonis brand) | France / Netherlands | Brive (France) and Roden (Netherlands); US site planned | Active |
| Harder Digital | Germany | Germany and Latvia | Active; 60% owned by THEON since 2024 |
| BEL Optronic Devices (BELOP) | India | Pune | Active |
| NNVT | China | Not confirmed | Active (secondary source) |
In 1996 a US Department of Justice guide noted that ITT and Litton were then the only two US tube makers. Both lines still exist: the ITT line is today Elbit America, and the Litton line is today L3Harris. In 2026 Elbit America described itself as one of two US Gen 3 tube makers.
L3Harris Technologies (Integrated Vision Solutions)
Where made: Tempe, Arizona. Tube formats: 18 mm MX-10160 style and MX-11769. Today: active US Gen III tube maker.
History and ownership
- 1976: night vision manufacturing starts in Tempe with 18 mm Gen II tubes (per L3Harris).
- 1986: development of filmed Gen III tubes begins (per L3Harris).
- 1998: development of unfilmed (filmless) Gen III tubes begins; Litton introduced the filmless tube for the Omnibus V contract (secondary source).
- 2001: Northrop Grumman completes its purchase of Litton Industries (secondary source).
- 2008: L-3 Communications agrees to buy Northrop Grumman’s Electro-Optical Systems business (Garland, Texas; night vision and applied optics).
- 2015: the Tempe unit, then L-3 Warrior Systems, wins a contract for tube assemblies for AN/PVS-15 and AN/PVS-18, and a contract for the AN/PVS-31 BNVD.
- 2019: Harris and L3 Technologies merge into L3Harris. The former Harris (ex-ITT) night vision business is sold to Elbit Systems of America, so today’s L3Harris tubes continue the Litton/Tempe line.
- 2022: L3Harris receives a US Defense Logistics Agency award for MX-11769 tubes.
Products and technology
- Gen III GaAs tubes, filmed and unfilmed, with autogating and automatic brightness control; gain-control (MX-11769) versions.
- Green and white phosphor.
- High-gain unfilmed tubes, an anti-bloom layer to reduce halo (development from 2018), and a 3000 FOM development programme (from 2019), per L3Harris.
- L3Harris says its microchannel plate pore size was reduced from 8 to 4 microns over about 25 years.
- Devices using L3Harris tubes include the AN/PVS-31A BNVD, GPNVG, ENVG-B, AN/PVS-14, AN/PVS-15 and AN/PVS-18.
- L3Harris follows the US Army position that there is no official Gen IV tube.
Elbit Systems of America – Night Vision (former ITT Night Vision)
Where made: Roanoke County (Hollins area), Virginia. Tube formats: 18 mm MX-10160 and MX-11769; historically MX-10130. Today: active US Gen III tube maker.
History and ownership
- 1959: the Roanoke-area factory opens (per Elbit America).
- 1962: ITT starts producing night vision technology (Gen 0).
- 1969: ITT wins its first US Army development contract for Gen 2 goggles.
- 1982: ITT starts Gen 3 tube production in Roanoke, with a first production contract for the AN/AVS-6 aviation goggle.
- 1985: an ITT/Varo joint venture receives a multi-year AN/PVS-7B production contract.
- 2003: first Army deliveries with ITT Gen 3 Pinnacle tubes.
- 2007: ITT delivers its one millionth Gen 3 tube.
- 2011: ITT spins off its defence business as Exelis (secondary source).
- 2015: Harris Corporation acquires Exelis (secondary source).
- 2019: Elbit Systems of America, a subsidiary of Elbit Systems Ltd. (Israel), buys the Harris night vision business; it is based in Roanoke.
- 2022 and 2025: US Defense Logistics Agency awards for MX-11769 tubes and for white phosphor tubes for the AN/PVS-14.
- September 2026: Elbit America rebrands as Twenty-Six Defense. Whether the night vision unit trades under this name was not confirmed.
Products and technology
- Gen 3 GaAs tubes in green and white phosphor. ITT used the name Pinnacle for its Gen 3 ground-goggle tube; dealers describe Pinnacle as thin-filmed and autogated (secondary source).
- MX-10160 fixed-gain tubes (part numbers F9400, F9800) and MX-11769 field-adjustable gain tubes (F9415, F9815).
- Elbit America quotes minimum resolution of 64 or 72 lp/mm and minimum photoresponse of 1500 µA/lm, depending on the required performance level.
- Devices: AN/AVS-6 and AN/AVS-9 (ANVIS), AN/PVS-23, AN/PVS-14, historically AN/PVS-7B, and weapon sights.
Exosens (Photonis brand)
Where made: Brive, France and Roden, Netherlands (per a 2008 Photonis presentation); headquarters in Mérignac near Bordeaux. A first US tube production site in Sturbridge, Massachusetts was announced in 2026, with production expected in early 2027. Tube formats: 18 mm (two package sizes), 16 mm, and 18/25/40 mm scientific intensifiers. Today: active; listed on Euronext Paris.
History and ownership
- Early lineage: the Brive site goes back to Philips (1937), and the Dutch site to Oude Delft and later DEP (Delft Electronic Products) (secondary source).
- 1998: Photonis is formed from the Philips operation in Brive; in 2005 the Photonis Group combines the French, Dutch (DEP) and US (Burle) operations (secondary source).
- 1999–2002: introduction of SDH-3 (1999), DEP XD-4 (2000) and XR-5 with auto-gating (2002), per the Exosens history timeline.
- 2014: 4G-compliant INTENS tube; 16 mm version in 2015; US market launch of 4G in 2017 (per Exosens).
- 2021: Groupe HLD acquires Photonis Group.
- 2023: Photonis Group is renamed Exosens; Photonis remains the brand for intensified products.
- 2024: Exosens lists on Euronext Paris; Groupe HLD remains the majority shareholder.
- 2025: OPS.4 tube line and the 5G tube are introduced.
Products and technology
- 4G: extended spectral range (Exosens states it can see 1064 nm laser designators) and fast autogating; used in European military programmes.
- 4G+: extended bandwidth, high figure of merit and small halo; P45 white phosphor versions.
- 5G: launched in September 2025; Exosens describes it as its highest-performing tube, with about 30% higher figure of merit than current standard tubes.
- OPS.4 (entry and training tier, two performance levels), XR5, and the ECHO series for commercial users such as hunters and sport shooters.
- P43 green and P45 white phosphor; Photonis states it was the first to develop and sell white phosphor tubes.
- Exosens describes its tubes as made in the EU and not subject to ITAR.
Harder Digital
Where made: headquarters in Woltersdorf, Germany; production mainly in Germany and Latvia, with a subsidiary in Serbia. Today: active.
- 1999: company founded.
- September 2024: THEON International announces the purchase of a 60% controlling stake. THEON, a night vision device maker, said it buys about half of Harder Digital’s output and that the funds would expand Gen III production lines.
- Products: Gen I, Gen II and Gen III image intensifier tubes and custom tubes.
- Product names, formats, phosphor options and autogating details were not confirmed from official sources, so they are not listed here.
BEL Optronic Devices Limited (BELOP)
Where made: Bhosari Industrial Area, Pune, India. Today: active.
- 1990: established at the request of the Indian Ministry of Defence to develop and make image intensifier tubes and their high-voltage power supplies.
- Subsidiary of Bharat Electronics Limited, a Government of India enterprise.
- Makes tubes and modules from component level; BEL states it has supplied more than 150,000 tubes.
NNVT – North Night Vision Technology
This section is based on secondary sources (a community wiki and listings). The founding year, parent group, production site and official website were not confirmed.
- Makes Gen 1 and Gen 2-type tubes, with product generations named NVT-1 (1980s) to NVT-7 (2020) (secondary source).
- Autogating on some versions; green and white phosphor (secondary source).
- Formats reported include 16 mm, 18 mm (including MX-10160 and MX-11769 styles) and 25 mm (secondary source).
- Also makes microchannel plates, fiber-optic plates and power supplies (secondary source).
Historical tube makers and lineages
- Litton (Litton Electro-Optical Systems, Tempe, Arizona and Garland, Texas). A major US tube maker from the Gen II era. Delivered MX-11620 25 mm Gen III tubes under Omnibus V and introduced the filmless tube. Passed to Northrop Grumman and then L-3; today part of L3Harris.
- ITT (Roanoke, Virginia). The other major US maker. Started Gen 3 production in 1982 and supplied the Pinnacle tube from 2003. Passed to Exelis, Harris and Elbit America; see Elbit America.
- Varo (Garland, Texas). Produced the AN/PVS-7B in a joint venture with ITT from 1985.
- RCA. Developed the first inverting image intensifier in the 1930s (secondary source).
- Philips. Gilles Holst developed the first successful infrared converter tube at Philips in 1934; the Philips Brive site later became part of Photonis (secondary source).
Scientific intensifier makers (not night vision goggle tubes)
Some companies make image intensifiers for science and industry rather than for night vision devices. These tubes are built for tasks such as very fast gating in cameras and laboratory instruments. They are a different product category and are not sold as replacements for goggle or monocular tubes.
- Photek (St Leonards-on-Sea, United Kingdom): founded in 1991 (secondary source); acquired by Tibidabo Scientific Industries in 2021. Makes fast-gated, high-gain intensifiers, image diodes, MCP photomultipliers and streak tubes.
- Hamamatsu Photonics (Japan): makes scientific and industrial image intensifiers, for example an 18 mm Gen II tube with a two-stage MCP and gate times down to 5 ns.
- Exosens also makes scientific intensifiers (for example its 2024 25 mm tube) alongside its night vision tubes.
Many well-known night vision brands are device makers rather than tube makers: they design housings and optics and fit tubes bought from the companies above. Housing makers are covered on a separate page.
Sources
- L3Harris – Gen III image intensification tubes
- L3Harris – Guide to Gen III image intensifier tube technology (PDF)
- L3Harris – Pioneering night vision’s next frontier (2021)
- UPI – Northrop Grumman sells Electro-Optical Systems to L-3 (2008)
- Aviation Week – L-3 signs acquisition of Northrop’s EO business
- Military & Aerospace Electronics – L-3 Warrior Systems tube upgrade contract (2015)
- Military & Aerospace Electronics – L-3 Warrior Systems BNVD contract
- Military & Aerospace Electronics – DLA image intensifier tube awards (2022)
- Elbit Systems – agreement to acquire Harris Night Vision (2019)
- Elbit Systems – acquisition of Harris Night Vision completed (2019)
- Military & Aerospace Electronics – Elbit to buy Harris night vision business
- WVTF – Roanoke County’s connection to night vision (2025)
- SecurityInfoWatch – ITT delivers one millionth Gen 3 tube (2007)
- ITT Industries press release – first Pinnacle ANVIS shipped (2003)
- Elbit America – MX-10160 image intensifier tubes
- Elbit America – MX-11769 image intensifier tubes
- ASDNews – Elbit America Gen 3 tubes (2026)
- ASDNews – Elbit America white phosphor tubes for US Army (2025)
- Breaking Defense – Elbit America rebrands as Twenty-Six Defense (2026)
- FAS – AN/PVS-7 night vision goggle
- Wikipedia – Exelis Inc.
- US NIJ – guide to image intensifier night vision devices, 1996 (PDF)
- EDR Magazine – Photonis Group becomes Exosens
- Euronext – Exosens lists on Euronext Paris (2024)
- Exosens – company overview
- Exosens – history
- Exosens – image intensifier tubes
- Exosens – 16 mm image intensifier tube
- Exosens – commercial image intensifier tubes
- Exosens – Photonis night vision one-pager (PDF)
- Exosens – Photonis 5G presentation (PDF)
- Photonis – 16 mm 4G tube for Dutch MoD, press release (PDF)
- Photonis – 25 mm image intensifier, SPIE Photonics West 2024 (PDF)
- Defence Industry Europe – Exosens US tube production site (2026)
- Photonis company presentation, 2008 (PDF, hosted by CERN)
- PrivSource – Groupe HLD acquisition of Photonis
- THEON – acquisition of Harder Digital (2024)
- ASDNews – THEON announces acquisition of Harder Digital
- THEON press release – approval of Harder Digital acquisition (PDF)
- Bharat Electronics – BEL Optronic Devices Limited
- NV-International wiki – NNVT (community source)
- NV-International wiki – Litton Industries (community source)
- Photonics.com – Army takes early delivery of Litton equipment
- Photek
- Photonics.com – Tibidabo Scientific Industries acquires Photek
- Wikipedia – Photek
- Hamamatsu – V4183U image intensifier
- Wikipedia – Image intensifier
Last checked: 9 November 2026. Spotted an error? Tell us in the forum.