Novel intense blue emitting Bi2Zr2O7:Ce3+ nanocomposites insertion into flexible polymer films for anti-counterfeiting, long-term storage fingerprints, and display device applications

Abstract

The development of multifunctional organic/inorganic hybrid materials for anti-counterfeiting and food packaging applications can be achieved through the use of polymer nanocomposites containing poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and chitosan (CS), as well as Ce3+-activated Bi2Zr2O7 nanocomposites (PCBC NCs). However, synthetic methods for these nanocomposites are often time- and energy-intensive, leading to heterogeneous films that require compatibilizers to disperse the organic matrix's inorganic nanoparticles (NPs). This study used a simple solution casting approach to impregnate the appropriate phosphor sample into PVA-CS (PC) flexible films, resulting in luminous ink for high-security anti-counterfeiting applications. Using this nanocomposite ink offers an even higher level of security, as the prints can be submerged in copper chloride (CuCl2) aqueous solutions to quench the luminous message. The masked fingerprints used for long-term storage (up to 12 months) exhibit stable level 1–3 ridge features with high contrast and sensitivity, which may improve printing quality and performance in the fight against counterfeiting. In addition, a mathematical model implemented in Python-based software was used to investigate the latent fingerprints of level 1–2 ridge features.