Cr3+/Er3+ co-doped LaAlO3 perovskite phosphor: a near-infrared persistent luminescence probe covering the first and third biological windows. Issue 31 (31st July 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Xu, Jian; Murata, Daisuke; Katayama, Yumiko; Ueda, Jumpei; Tanabe, Setsuhisa
• Is Part Of: Journal of materials chemistry. Volume 5:Issue 31(2017)
• Page Start: 6385
• Page End: 6393
• Publication Date: 2017-07-31
• Subjects: Materials -- Periodicals; Chemistry, Analytic -- Periodicals; Biomedical materials -- Research -- Periodicals; 543.0284
• DOI: 10.1039/c7tb01332a
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2050-750X

Abstract

Abstract : We have developed a novel persistent phosphor of LaAlO3 perovskite doped with Er 3+, Cr 3+ and Sm 3+ (LAO:Er–Cr–Sm), which exhibits long persistent luminescence (PersL) at 1553 nm due to the Er 3+ : 4 I13/2 → 4 I15/2 transition as well as at 734 nm due to the Cr 3+ : 2 E( 2 G) → 4 A2 ( 4 F) transition. Abstract : We have developed a novel persistent phosphor of LaAlO3 perovskite doped with Er 3+, Cr 3+, and Sm 3+ (LAO:Er–Cr–Sm), which exhibits long persistent luminescence (PersL) at 1553 nm due to the Er 3+ : 4 I13/2 → 4 I15/2 transition as well as at 734 nm due to the Cr 3+ : 2 E( 2 G) → 4 A2 ( 4 F) transition. The intense near-infrared (NIR) PersL bands from Cr 3+ and Er 3+ match well with the first (NIR-I, 650–950 nm) and third (NIR-III, 1500–1800 nm) biological windows as well as response curves of commercial Si and InGaAs detectors. The photon emission rates of Cr 3+ (6.06 × 10 16 cps sr −1 m −2 ) and Er 3+ (3.69 × 10 16 cps sr −1 m −2 ) at 60 min after ceasing ultraviolet (UV) illumination were comparable with that of the widely used ZnGa2 O4 :Cr 3+ red persistent phosphor (5.41 × 10 16 cps sr −1 m −2 ). Furthermore, we also show the first in vitro autofluorescence-free imaging through pork tissues by Si/InGaAs cameras monitoring Cr 3+ /Er 3+ PersL, and demonstrate that the Er 3+ emission can achieve higher spatial resolution than the Cr 3+ emission due to the reduced light scattering at longer wavelengths. It is indicated that this material can act as a promising bio-probe for in vivo optical imaging, especially in the NIR-III biological window.