Theory for upconversion of incoherent images

Upconversion of images is a generic method for shifting the spectral content of entire images. A comprehensive theory for upconversion of incoherent light images is presented and compared against experiments. In particular we consider the important case for upconversion of infinity corrected light. We show that the spatial resolution for upconversion of incoherent light images is better than for the corresponding coherent image upconversion case.

The fundamental differences between upconversion of coherent and incoherent images are investigated theoretically and experimentally. The theory includes the general case of upconversion using TEMnm modes.