Research on the Regulation of Upconversion Fluorescence Spectral Properties on Single Particles

doi:10.19894/j.issn.1000-0518.240271

Chinese Journal of Applied Chemistry ›› 2025, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (3): 365-374.DOI: 10.19894/j.issn.1000-0518.240271

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Research on the Regulation of Upconversion Fluorescence Spectral Properties on Single Particles

Yun-Yang LI¹^,², Rui-Zhe ZHENG¹, Yan ZHOU¹, Tu-Xun HAIREGU¹^,²(), Biao DONG¹^,³()

^1.College of Medical Engineering and Technology，Xinjiang Medical University，Urumqi 830054，China
^2.State Key Laboratory of Pathogenesis，Prevention and Treatment of High Incidence Diseases in Central Asia，Urumqi 830054，China
^3.State Key Laboratory on Integrated Optoelectronics，College of Electronic Science and Engineering，Jilin University，Changchun 130012，China

Received:2024-08-05 Accepted:2025-01-21 Published:2025-03-01 Online:2025-04-11
Contact: Tu-Xun HAIREGU,Biao DONG
About author:dongb@jlu.edu.cn
hrg@xjmu.edu.cn；
Supported by:
the Natural Science Foundation of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region(2022D01C727);the State Key Laboratory of Pathogenesis Prevention and Treatment of High Incidence Disease and Central Asia, Xinjiang Medical University(SKL-HIDCA-2023-15);the Talent Project of Tianchi Doctoral Program in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region(0301050903)

Abstract

Abstract:

Lanthanide-doped upconversion （UC） micro/nanocrystals have demonstrated significant application prospects in fields such as display， sensing， bioimaging， and drug delivery due to their excellent optical properties. Despite remarkable progress in upconversion luminescence research， the challenge of achieving color control at the single-particle level remains unsolved. This study proposes a strategy for transforming NaYF₄ single-particle crystals into Y₂O₃ crystals through in-situ heat treatment. By in-situ ion exchange， Y₂O₃ crystals grown in-situ were successfully obtained and their fluorescence， morphology， structure， and size were characterized. The study found that the in-situ grown Y₂O₃ microrods retained the same size and morphology as NaYF₄. The results of elemental distribution analysis and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy （TEM） further confirm the successful preparation of Y₂O₃∶Er³⁺/Yb³⁺. As the excitation power increases， the red-to-green intensity ratio （R/G） of Er3⁺ in the NaYF₄ host material gradually decreases from 4.5 to 3.42， while in the Y₂O₃ host material， this ratio significantly drops from 0.84 to 0.48. This demonstrates that through in-situ phase transformation of the crystals， real-time modulation of the upconversion red light of Er3⁺ in NaYF₄ towards bright upconversion green light in Y₂O₃ can be achieved. This research not only expands the research methods for rare-earth luminescent crystals at the single-particle level but also holds promise for the application of their multicolor fluorescence properties at the single-particle level in areas such as sophisticated anti-counterfeiting and multicolor imaging.

Key words: Rare-earth microparticles, Tunable fluorescence emission, Crystal structure transformation, Single-particle

CLC Number:

O611.3

Yun-Yang LI, Rui-Zhe ZHENG, Yan ZHOU, Tu-Xun HAIREGU, Biao DONG. Research on the Regulation of Upconversion Fluorescence Spectral Properties on Single Particles[J]. Chinese Journal of Applied Chemistry, 2025, 42(3): 365-374.

Figures/Tables 7

Fig.1 X-ray diffraction （XRD） pattern of NaYF4∶Er3+/Yb3+ microparticles

Fig.2 SEM image （A， B） and EDX elemental mapping （C） of NaYF4∶Er3+/Yb3+ microrod； SEM image （D） and EDX elemental mapping （E） of Y2O3∶Er3+/Yb3+ microrods prepared through thermal treatment

Fig.3 Structural characterization of NaYF4∶Er3+/Yb3+ microrod：（A） High-resolution TEM image；（B） Electron diffraction pattern after fast Fourier transform （FFT）；（C） High-resolution HAADF-STEM image；（D） Selected area electron diffraction （SAED） pattern. Structural characterization of Y2O3∶Er3+/Yb3+ microrod micrometer-sized rods prepared by heat treatment （E） High-resolution TEM image；（F） Electron diffraction pattern after FFT；（G） High-resolution HAADF-STEM image；（H） Selected area electron diffraction （SAED） pattern

Fig.4 （A） Schematic diagram of exciting at middle and end edge of single NaYF4∶Er3+/Yb3+ and Y2O3∶Er3+/Yb3+ microrods；（B） Emission spectra of exciting the middle parts of NaYF4∶Er3+/Yb3+ and Y2O3∶Er3+/Yb3+ microrods at 185 kW/cm2 power density；（C） Optical images of exciting at middle and end edge of NaYF4∶Er3+/Yb3+ and Y2O3∶Er3+/Yb3+ microrods

Fig.5 Power dependence of upconversion emission spectra for the rare earth particles

Fig.6 （A） The integral intensities of red and green light in the power-dependent upconversion emission spectrum of NaYF4∶Er3+/Yb3+ and （B） the variation of the R/G value；（C） The integral intensities of red and green light in the upconversion emission spectrum of Y2O3∶Er3+/Yb3+ microrods；（D） The variation of power-dependent R/G value

Fig.7 Upconversion optical imaging image of （A） NaYF4∶Er3+/Yb3+ and （B） Y2O3∶Er3+/Yb3+

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Research on the Regulation of Upconversion Fluorescence Spectral Properties on Single Particles

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