Up-conversion luminescence properties of Yb^3＋ and Ho^3＋ co-doped Bi3.84W0.16O6.24 powder synthesized by hydrothermal method

Using polyethylene glycol (PEG) as the surfactant, Bi3.84W0.16O6.24 up-conversion luminescence nano-crystal co-doped with Yb3+ and Ho3+ ions was synthesized by the hydrothermal method. The structure and properties of luminescence powder were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). It was of cubic system when the sample was synthesized at a low temperature and the particle size was about 30 nm. The results showed that adding surfactants was useful to improve the powder agglomeration and the grain crystal was spherical. The green emission peak at 546 nm and red emission peak at 655 nm, corresponding to the ( 5F4, 5S2)→ 5 I 8 and the 5 F 5 → 5 I 8 transitions of Ho 3+ , respectively, were simultaneously observed at room temperature under excitation of 980 nm semiconductor laser. The up-conversion luminescence intensity was the strongest when the concentration ratio of Yb3+ /Ho3+ was 6:1 and the concentration of Ho 3+ ion was 1.5 mol.%. The up-conversion mechanism was also studied. The green and red emission peaks were the two-photon absorption according to the relationship between the pump power and the luminescence intensity.     

Structure Property and Visible Upconversion of Er^3＋ Doped Gd2O3 Nanocrystals

Gd2O3:Er nanoparticles were prepared by a simple sol-gel method, The structure properties ot Gd2O3:Er were studied by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The visible up-converted luminescence spectra of Er^3 were investigated under excitation to ^4I9/2 level by 785nm laser. Laser power, Er^3 ion concentration and temperature dependences of the upconverted emissions were investigated to understand the upconversion mechanisms. Excited state absorption and energy transfer process are discussed as the possible mechanisms for the upconversion.     

Upconversion of Er^3＋ Ions in LiKGdF5 ： Er^3＋ , Dy^3＋ Single Crystal Produced by Infrared and Green Laser

The upconversion fluorescence of Er^3＋ ions in LiKGdF5 ： Er^3＋, Dy^3＋ single crystal was studied under 785, 514.5, and 980 nm laser excitation. With the laser excitation set at 785 nm, strong green （centered at 543 nm） upconversion emissions, as well as weak red （651 nm）, violet （406 nm）, and blue （470 nm） upconversion emissions were obtained. With 514.5 nm laser excitation, violet （406 nm） and blue （470 nm） upconversion emissions were observed. Under 980 nm laser excitation, strong green （543 nm） and weak red （651） emissions were also obtained. The laser power dependence of the upconverted emissions was investigated to understand the upconversion mechanism. The excited state absorption （ESA） and the energy transfer （ET） processes were discussed as the possible mechanisms for all upconversion emissions.     

Upconversion luminescence of Y2O3：Er^3＋ ,Yb^3＋ nanoparticles prepared by a homogeneous precipitation method

Y2O3： Er^3＋, Yb^3＋ nanoparticles were synthesized by a homogeneous precipitation method without and with different concentrations of EDTA 2Na. Upconversion luminescence spectra of the samples were studied under 980 nm laser excitation. The results of XRD showed that the obtained Y2O3：Er^3＋,Yb^3＋ nanoparticles were of a cubic structure. The average crystallite sizes calculated were in the range of 28-40 nm. Green and red upconversion emission were observed, and attributed to ^2H11/2,^4S3/2→^4I15/2 and ^4F9/2→^4I15/2 transitions of the ion, respectively. The ratio of the intensity of green emission to that of red emission drastically changed with a change in the EDTA 2Na concentration. In the sample synthesized without EDTA, the relative intensity of the green emission was weaker than that of the red emission. The relative intensities of green emission increased with the increased amount of EDTA 2Na used. The possible upconversion luminescence mechanisms were discussed.     

Spectroscopic investigations on Er3+/Yb3+-doped oxyfluoride glass ceramics containing YOF nanocrystals

Spectroscopic properties of Er3+/Yb3+-doped transparent oxyfluoride borosilicate glass ceramics containing YOF nanocrystals were systematically investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed the formation of YOF nanocrystals in the glassy matrix. Based on the Judd-Ofelt theory, the intensity parameters Ωi (i=2, 4, 6), spontaneous emission probability, radiative lifetime, radiative quantum efficiency and the effective emission bandwidth were investigated. The upconversion luminescence intensity of Er3+ ions in the glass ceramics increased significantly with the increasing crystallization temperature. The transition mechanisms of the green and red upconversion luminescence were ascribed to a two-photon process, and the blue upconversion luminescence was a three-photon absorption process.     

Energy transfer and frequency upconversion in Er~（3＋）-Yb~（3＋） codoped oxy-fluoro-tungstosilicate glasses

Er3+-Yb3+ codoped oxy-fluoro-tungstosilicate glasses with infrared-to-visible frequency upconversion luminescence were prepared by melting quenching in air.The effects of Er3+ doping on the optical properties of the samples were measured by means of techniques such as optical absorption spectra and photoluminescence spectra.The results showed that intense green and red signals centered at 546 and 665 nm,corresponding to the 4S3/2 → 4I15/2 and 4F9/2 → 4I15/2 transitions of Er3+ by a multiphoton stepwise phonon-assisted excited-state absorption process,respectively,were simultaneously observed by exciting the samples with a diode laser operating at 980 nm at room temperature.The upconversion process was found very sensitive to Er3+ content at a constant Yb2O3 content of 5 mol.%.With the increase of Er3+ content from 0.5% to 1.5%,the upconversion intensity increased gradually.Further increasing of Er3+ content to 3.0% resulted in a significant fluorescence quenching.Moreover,the possible upconversion mechanisms were discussed based on the energy-matching conditions and the quadratic dependence on excitation power.     

Energy transfer in Tb~（3＋）,Yb~（3＋） codoped Lu_2O_3 near-infrared downconversion nanophosphors

Tb3+ and Yb3+ codoped Lu2O3 nanophosphors were synthesized by the reverse-strike co-precipitation method. The obtained Lu2O3:Tb3+,Yb3+ nanophosphors were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and photoluminescence (PL) spectra. The XRD results showed that all the prepared nanophosphors could be readily indexed to pure cubic phase of Lu2O3 and indicated good crystallinity. The Tb3+→Yb3+ energy transfer mechanisms in the UV-blue region in Lu2O3 nanophosphors were investigated. The experimental results showed that the strong visible emission around 543 nm from Tb3+ (5D4→7F5) and near-infrared (NIR) emission around 973 nm from Yb3+ (2F5/2→2F7/2) of Lu2O3:Tb3+,Yb3+ nanophosphors were observed under ultraviolet light excitation, respectively. Tb3+ could be effectively excited up to its 4f75d1 state and relaxed down to the 5D4 level, from which the energy was transferred cooperatively to two neighboring Yb3+. The Yb3+ concentration dependent luminescent properties and lifetimes of both the visible and NIR emissions were also studied. The lifetime of the visible emission decreased with the increase of Yb3+ concentration, verifying the efficient energy transfer from the Tb3+ to the Yb3+. Cooperative energy transfer (CET) from Tb3+ to Yb3+ was discussed as a possible mechanism for the near-infrared emission. When doped concentrations were 1 mol.% Tb3+ and 2 mol.% Yb3+, the intensity of NIR emission was the strongest.     

Intense upconversion luminescence of Er3+/Yb3+ codoped oxyfluoride borosilicate glass ceramics containing Ba2GdF7 nanocrystals

Er3+/Yb3+-codoped transparent oxyfluoride borosilicate glass ceramics containing Ba2GdF7 nanocrystals were prepared and spectroscopic properties of rare earth ions were investigated.Fluoride nanocrystals Ba2GdF7 were successfully precipitated in glass matrix,which was confirmed by X-ray diffraction(XRD)and transmission electron microscopy(TEM)results.In comparison with the as-made precursor,significant enhancement ofupconversion luminescence was observed in the Er3+/Yb3+codoped oxyfluoride glass ceramics,which may be due to the variation of coordination environment around Er3+and Yb3+ions after crystallization.The transition mechanisms of the green and red upconversion luminescence were ascribed to a two-photon process,and that of the blue upconversion luminescence was a three-photon process.     

Luminescence properties of Tm^3＋/Yb^3＋, Er^3＋/Yb^3＋ and Ho^3＋/Yb^3＋ activated calcium tungstate

CaWO4 phosphor activated by the Tm3+/Yb3+,Er3+/Yb3+ and Ho3+/Yb3+ ions were synthesized by a traditional high-temperature solid-state method.The crystal structures and morphologies of the products were characterized by X-ray powders diffraction method(XRD) ,infrared spectra(FT-IR) and scanning electron microscopy(SEM) .The samples were found to show up-conversion luminescence properties.CaWO4 doped with Tm3+/Yb3+ showed blue luminescence characteristic of Tm(III) ion in the range of 460-485 nm,corresponding to the 1G4→3H6 electronic transition.CaWO4 doped with Er3+/Yb3+ showed strong green luminescence at 510-565 nm(2H11/2,4S3/2→4I15/2) and weak red luminescence at 640-685 nm(4F9/2→4I15/2) of Er(III) ion.CaWO4 doped with Ho3+/Yb3+ phosphor emitted green luminescence at 525-560 nm(5S2,5F4→5I8) and red luminescence at 630-670 nm(5F5→5I8) and at 730-770 nm(5S2,5F4→5I7) ,which is the characteristic of Ho(III) ion.     

Enhanced ultraviolet upconversion in YF3：Yb^3＋/Tm^3＋ nanocrystals

Unusual intense infrared-to-ultraviolet upconversion luminescence was observed in YF3:Yb3+(20%)/Tm3+(1%) nanocrystals under 980 nm excitation. The intense ultraviolet emissions (1I6→3H6, 1I6→3F4, and 1D2→3H6) were affirmed arising from the excitation processes of five-photon and four-photon. In comparison with the bulk sample with the same chemical compositions, ultraviolet upconversion lumi-nescence of the nanocrystals was markedly enhanced. Spectral analysis indicated that the enhancement was attributed to the decrease of Judd-Ofelt parameter Ω2, which precluded the transition rate from 3F2 to 3F4, enhanced the energy transfer process and populated the 1D2 level: 3F2→3H6 (Tm3+): 3H4→1D2 (Tm3+).     

Yellow upconversion luminescence in Ho3＋/yb3＋ co-doped Gd2Mo3O9 phosphor

The strong yellow upconversion (UC) light emission was observed in Ho3+/Yb3+co-doped Gd2Mo3O9 phosphor under the excitation of 980 nm diode laser. The phosphors were synthesized by the traditional soli...     

Synthesis of well oil-dispersible BaYF₅:Yb³⁺/Er³⁺ nanocrystals with green upconversion fluorescence

Nearly monodisperse,regular-shaped and well oil-dispersible tetragonal BaYF5:0.2Yb3+/0.02Er3+ nanocrystals(NCs) were synthesized in water-ethanol-oleic acid-sodium oleate system.The as-obtained NCs exhibited bright upconversion(UC) fluorescence under the 980 nm excitation.Blue(2H9/2-4I15/2),green((2H11/2,4S3/2)-4I15/2) and red(4F9/2-4I15/2) transitions were observed.The results indicated that the relative intensity of green to red increased gradually with increasing power density,which were seldom in the previous work.Therefore,the UC properties and mechanism were studied in detail.     

Up-conversion luminescence of Tm3+/Yb3+ co-doped oxy-fluoride glasses

The oxy-fluorosilicate glasses co-doped with Yb3+/Tm3+ were prepared.The absorption spectra were recorded.The Tm3+ ion showed two absorption bands,with one at 774 nm due to 1G4→3H6 transition and the other at 667 nm due to 1G4→3F4 transition.The energy transfer between Tm3+ ion and Yb3+ ion and the up-conversion fluorescence of Tm3+ ion were investigated using 980 nm LD excitation.The results showed that the blue and red emissions were three-photon absorption processes corresponding with 1G4→3H6 and 1G4→3F4...     

Energy transfer between Gd^3＋ and Tb^3＋ in phosphate glass

The phosphate glass doped with Gd3+,Tb3+ and Gd3+/Tb3+ were prepared by high temperature melting.The photo-luminescence behavior of Gd3+ and Tb3+ in phosphate glass were investigated by absorption,excitation,and emission spectroscopy.Energy transfer between Gd3+ and Tb3+ in phosphate glass was studied,and it was found that there were two energy transfer mechanisms between Gd3+ and Tb3+ in phosphate glass: one was from 4f7 level of Gd3+ to the 4f8 level of Tb3+,and the other was from 5d level of Tb3+ to 4f7 level of Gd3+.The new findings would be beneficial for the study of Tb3+-doped scintillating phosphate glass.     

Synthesis and upconversion luminescence properties of NaYF4：yb^3＋/Er^3＋ microspheres

Cubic NaYF4:yb3+(20%)/Er3+(1%) microspheres were synthesized by EDTA-assisted hydrothermal method. Under 980 nm exci-tation, ultraviolet (4G11/2→4I15/2), violet (2H9/2→4I15/2), grogn (4F7/2→4I15/2, 2H11/2→4I15/2, and 4S3/2→4I15/2), and red (4F9/2→4I15/2) upconversion fluorescence were observed. The number of laser photons absorbed in one upconversion excitation process, n, was determined to be 3.89, 1.61, 2.55, and 1.09 for the ultraviolet, violet, green, and red emissions, respectively. Obviously, n=3.89 indicated that a four-photon process was involved in populating the 4G11/2 state, and n=2.55 indicated that a three-photon process was involved in populating the 4F7/2/2H<11/2>4S3/2 levels. For the violet and red emissions, the population of the states 2H9/2 and 4F9/2 separately came from three-photon and two-photon proc-esses. The decrease of n was well explained by the mechanism of competition between linear decay and upconversion processes for the de-pletion of the intermediate excited states.     

Green, orange, and red upconversion luminescence in Nd~(3 )/Yb~(3 ): Cs_2NaGdCl_6 powders under 785 nm laser excitation

Nd3 :Cs2NaGdCl6 and Nd3 , Yb3 :Cs2NaGdCl6 polycrystalline powder samples were prepared by Morss method E. Under 785 nm semiconductor laser pumping, the upconversion luminescence of Nd3 ions in Cs2NaGdCl6 was investigated at room temperature, and three upconversion emissions near 538 nm (Green), 603 nm (Orange), and 675 nm (Red) were observed and assigned to 4G7/2→4I9/2, (4G7/2→4I11/2; 4G5/2→4I9/2), and (4G7/2→4I13/2; 4G5/2→4I11/2), respectively. The dependences of these upconverted emissions on laser power and Nd3 ion concentration were investigated, to explore the upconversion mechanism. The effect of doping Yb3 ions on the upconversion luminescence of Nd3 in Cs2NaGdCl6 was also studied under 785 nm laser excitation. The energy transfer processes were discussed as the possible mecha-nism for the above upconversion emissions.     

Preparation and characterization of Er3＋-Yb3＋-Ce3＋ co-doped transparent glass ceramic containing nano Cas（PO4）3F crystals

A transparent glass ceramic tri-doped with Ce3+/Er3+/Yb3+ was fabricated by the high-temperature melting technique and following heat-treatment.X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscope results demonstrated that Ca5(PO4)3F(FAP) nanocrystals,possessed with preferable emission performances for the 1.54 m transition for doping Er3+,were homogeneously precipitated among the glass matrix with a mean size of 30 nm.Addition of Ce3+ greatly enhanced 1.54 m fluorescence of Er3+ by the cross relaxation energy transfer between Er3+ and Ce3+.Meanwhile,incorporation of Ce3+ dramatically decreased the visible upconversion emission intensity of glass ceramic than that of glass,suggesting that Ce3+ might incorporate into the FAP nanocrystals.The properties of this transparent glass ceramic showed the potential application as an efficient 980 nm pumped infrared laser medium.     

Upconversion luminescence ofNaYF4：Yb,Er nanocrystals with high uniformity

The NaYF4：Yb,Er nanocrystals were synthesized via the thermal decomposition ot metal oleate precursors, lhe nanocrys- tals in hexagonal structure were highly uniform and in size of 25 nm. The bright upconversion luminescence was observed under the excitation of 980 nm laser and the upeonversion emission spectra were investigated at different pump powers. The emission intensity ratio of red light to green light linearly increased with pump power increasing. This result indicated that there existed a large threshold power of saturation pump for the first excitation state in NaYFa：Yb,Er nanocrystals comparing to that in bulk material.     

Upconversion emission of SrYbF5：Er3＋nanosheets modified by Tm3＋ions

Through a hydrothermal route, the Er3＋and Tm3＋co-doped SrYbF5 nanosheets were synthesized. The resulting samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and luminescence spec-tra. Under the excitation of 980 nm laser irradiation, the upconversion emissions of Tm3＋ions centered at 474 nm （1G4→3H6）, 679 nm （3F2→3H6）, 699 nm （3F3→3H6）, 803 nm （3H4→3H6） and emissions of Er3＋ions centered at 522 nm （2H11/2→4I15/2）, 543 nm （4S3/2→4I15/2）, 654 nm （4F9/2→4I15/2） were observed. The upconversion emissions of Er3＋ions were adjusted by the concentration of Tm3＋ions. The energy transfer mechanisms among Er3＋-Yb3＋-Tm3＋in SrYbF5 nanosheets were discussed.     

Infrared to near-infrared and visible upconversion photoluminescence of LiYbF4：Er3＋ nanorods

Colloidal LiYbF4:Er3+ nanorods were synthesized in an aqueous system which had the ratio of length to diameter of～2.These LiYbF4:Er3+ nanorods emitted intense upconversion light under excitation of infrared at 1488 nm.Importantly,the intensities of two-and three-photon anti-Stokes upconversion PL bands were observed which were comparable to that of the Stokes emission under excitation with low power density.The plots of excitation power density versus emission intensity indicated that all the emissions centered at 549,668,and 978 nm took a two-photon upconversion process.However,it could be simply deduced that the energy of two photons of 1488 nm were inadequate to produce a photon of 668 or 549 nm.For this conflict,the shape and saturation effects in the intermediate energy states were introduced to demonstrate the corresponding upconversion processes.