Facile Synthesis and Controllable Emission of Tm3+/Er3+-Doped and -Co-doped α-NaYbF4 Upconversion Nanocrystals

Abstract Tm3+, Er3+-doped and -co-doped α-NaYbF4 nanoparticles were synthesized via a facile hydrothermal route with oleic acid as the capping agent. Experimental results showed that the doped NaYbF4 nanoparticles possessed a cubic phase with the average size of ∼13 nm. Upon excitation by a 980 nm laser, the as-synthesized nanoparticles exhibited blue and red upconversion emissions corresponding to the monodoped Tm3+, Er3+ in the cubic-phase NaYbF4, respectively, and intense green and red emissions in the Tm3+/Er3+-co-doped NaYbF4 nanoparticles. Furthermore, the possible energy transfer mechanism among Yb3+/Tm3+/Er3+ in α-NaYbF4 nanoparticles was also proposed. The cell toxicity test revealed that the as-synthesized upconversion nanoparticles possessed remarkably low cytotoxicity. All of the advantageous features including facile synthesis, controllable emission, and low cytotoxicity make the upconversion nanoparticles promising for multicolor bioimaging and anticounterfeiting applications.