Quantum well infared image conversion panel and associated methods

An imaging chip comprising:;

• a single integrated device including:
• a photodiode (PD) or photoconductor (PC) integrated with a single LED, the LED having an emitting surface dimension of approximately 2 mm.times.2 mm or greater,
• image capture means positioned to capture a plurality of different intensity values from the single LED.

A method of imaging comprising:

• providing an imaging chip, including a single up-conversion means, said up-conversion means including one of a photodiode and a photoconductor, and a single light emitting diode, said single light emitting diode having a dimension across its light emitting surface of approximately equal to or greater than 2 mm.times.2 mm;
• providing an image in the form of FIR energy to said single up-conversion means, and, providing converted NIR energy from the single light emitting diode to a means for capturing a plurality of different values from the single light emitting diode, corresponding to the image.

A far infrared (FIR) to near infrared (NIR) light converter comprising:

• a single quantum well intersubband photodetector (QWIP) on a substrate, the QWIP having a light receiving surface of approximately 2 mm.times.2 mm or greater to provide a plurality of electrical signals corresponding to input light representative of an image, and, an array of detectors disposed to for receiving signals corresponding to the plurality of electrical signals to detect the image.