Abstract
With the aim of developing lanthanide fluoride-based nanoparticles (NPs) with enhanced upconversion (UC) luminescence properties, Ca2+-doped water-soluble β-NaErF4:Yb nanocrystals are prepared by a facile solvothermal reaction using ethylene glycol and water as the solvents and comb-like superplasticizer (SP), polyacrylic-co-methyl allyl polyoxyethylene ether copolymer as the capping agent. The SP-capped upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) are characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results show that the capping agent has great influence on the morphology and colloidal solubility of the nanocrystals. The morphological and phase evolution of the nanocrystals is studied. Furthermore, bright red UC luminescence is observed when the sol is irradiated by a 980 nm laser, and the red UC photoluminescence (UCPL) emission is enhanced by eight times upon doping with 50 mol% Ca2+. The decay time and stability of the UCPL are also discussed. With the efficient stable red UC, the Ca2+ doped water-soluble NaErF4:Yb nanocrystals may find use in various optical applications.
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