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Shaping Luminescent Properties of Yb 3+ and Ho 3+ Co‐Doped Upconverting Core–Shell β‐NaYF 4 Nanoparticles by Dopant Distribution and Spacing
Author(s) -
Pilch Aleksandra,
Würth Christian,
Kaiser Martin,
Wawrzyńczyk Dominika,
Kurnatowska Michalina,
Arabasz Sebastian,
Prorok Katarzyna,
Samoć Marek,
Strek Wiesław,
ReschGenger Ute,
Bednarkiewicz Artur
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
small
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.785
H-Index - 236
eISSN - 1613-6829
pISSN - 1613-6810
DOI - 10.1002/smll.201701635
Subject(s) - luminescence , dopant , materials science , phosphor , ion , activator (genetics) , ytterbium , nanoparticle , doping , nanotechnology , analytical chemistry (journal) , optoelectronics , chemistry , biochemistry , organic chemistry , gene , chromatography
At the core of luminescence color and lifetime tuning of rare earth doped upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs), is the understanding of the impact of the particle architecture for commonly used sensitizer (S) and activator (A) ions. In this respect, a series of core@shell NaYF 4 UCNPs doped with Yb 3+ and Ho 3+ ions are presented here, where the same dopant concentrations are distributed in different particle architectures following the scheme: YbHo core and YbHo@…, …@YbHo, Yb@Ho, Ho@Yb, YbHo@Yb, and Yb@YbHo core–shell NPs. As revealed by quantitative steady‐state and time‐resolved luminescence studies, the relative spatial distribution of the A and S ions in the UCNPs and their protection from surface quenching has a critical impact on their luminescence characteristics. Although the increased amount of Yb 3+ ions boosts UCNP performance by amplifying the absorption, the Yb 3+ ions can also efficiently dissipate the energy stored in the material through energy migration to the surface, thereby reducing the overall energy transfer efficiency to the activator ions. The results provide yet another proof that UC phosphor chemistry combined with materials engineering through intentional core@shell structures may help to fine‐tune the luminescence features of UCNPs for their specific future applications in biosensing, bioimaging, photovoltaics, and display technologies.