#university of amsterdam
Precisely tailoring the dynamics of upconversion luminescence
A team of researchers led by Professors Hong Zhang (photonic nanochemistry) and Evert Jan Meijer (computational chemistry) of the University of Amsterdam’s Van ’t Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences has significantly improved the fundamental understanding of photon upconversion in nanoparticles. Through the collaborative approach of advanced spectroscopy and theoretical modelling they were able to establish that the migration of excitation energy greatly affects the upconversion dynamics. In a recent publication in Angewandte Chemie the researchers describe how ‘dopant ions spatially separated’ (DISS) nanostructures can be used for tailoring the upconversion dynamics.
Upconversion is a process in which one photon is emitted upon absorption of several photons of lower energy. It thus 'jacks’ the light from lower to higher frequencies. Typically upconversion materials are doped with lanthanide ions. These are able to shift the near infrared (NIR) light of an economic continuous wave milliwatt laser towards higher, visible frequencies and even into the ultraviolet (UV) spectral region. Potential applications in super resolution spectroscopy, high density data storage, anti-counterfeiting and biological imaging and photo-induced therapy.
Upconversion luminescence dynamics has long been believed to be determined solely by the emitting ions and their interactions with neighbouring sensitizing ions. The current research shows that this does not hold for nanostructures. Zhang, Meijer and co-workers demonstrate that in nanocrystals the luminescence time behaviour is seriously affected by the migration process of the excitation energy.
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Life of a biology student, sampling some seaweed in the rain and sinking down in the sand.
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