A display apparatus includes an emissive screen having luminescent pixels that are addressed solely by a laser addressing system. Each pixel includes a luminescent region located next to a photocathode. When struck by the laser beam, free electrons are created that are accelerated by an applied high voltage field from the photocathode to the luminescent region, thereby causing the luminescent region to emit visible light with a brightness (energy) that is substantially higher than the energy of the addressing beam. Apertures are optionally provided in hexagonal luminescent regions to relax beam-scanning requirements. Optional millichannel plates (crude versions of 2.sup.nd generation night vision system Microchannel plates) are provided to enhance photon multiplication. A position sensitive device is implemented using the photocathode or photoanode (luminescent) material to facilitate the scanning and modulating process. Ambient light is prevented from generating unwanted pixel activation by filter coatings, spatial filtering or electronic filtering.