Abstract: The design of objective lens for low-light night vision system with plastic and glass optical elements is introduced. The optical athermalization method is used for temperature change and aberration balancing. The operating wavelength is in the range from 0.65 μm to 0.95 μm, the field of view is 40°, and F-number is 1.2. The modulation transfer function (MTF), temperature adaptability and weight of night vision optical system are analyzed and evaluated by the CODE V optical design software. The design result indicates that MTF of all FOVs is more than 0.4 at 40 lines per millimeter in the total temperature range and the weight of all lenses is less than 20 g. The optical system obtains weight reduction and better image quality.

Key words: ordnance science and technology, night vision, optical design, objective lens, athermalization