TY - JOUR A1 - Kaiser, M. A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Kraft, Marco A1 - Hyppänen, I. A1 - Soukka, T. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Power-dependent upconversion quantum yield of NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+ nano- and micrometer-sized particles – measurements and simulations N2 - Photophysical studies of nonlinear lanthanide-doped photon upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) increasingly used in biophotonics and photovoltaics require absolute measurements of the excitation power density (P)-dependent upconversion luminescence (UCL) and luminescence quantum yields (ΦUC) for quantifying the material performance, UCL deactivation pathways, and possible enhancement factors. We present here the P-dependence of the UCL spectra, ΦUC, and slope factors of the different emission bands of representative 25 nm-sized oleate-capped β-NaYF4:17% Yb3+, 3% Er3+ UCNPs dispersed in toluene and as powder as well as ΦUC of 3 μm-sized upconversion particles (UCμP), all measured with a newly designed integrating sphere setup, enabling controlled variation of P over four orders of magnitude. This includes quantifying the influence of the beam shape on the measured ΦUC and comparison of experimental ΦUC with simulations utilizing the balancing power density model of the Andersson-Engels group and the simulated ΦUC of UCμP from the Berry group, underpinned by closely matching decay kinetics of our UC material. We obtained a maximum ΦUC of 10.5% for UCμP and a ΦUC of 0.6% and 2.1% for solid and dispersed UCNPs, respectively. Our results suggest an overestimation of the contribution of the purple and an underestimation of that of the red emission of β-NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+: microparticles by the simulations of the Berry group. Moreover, our measurements can be used as a guideline to the absolute determination of UCL and ΦUC KW - Upconversion KW - Photophysics KW - Nanoparticles PY - 2017 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c7nr02449e VL - 9 IS - 28 SP - 10051 EP - 10058 PB - The Royal Society of Chemistry AN - OPUS4-41550 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kraft, Marco T1 - Particle size dependent optical properties of hexagonal β-NaYF4: 2 % Er3+, 20 % Yb3+ upconversion nanoparticles in cyclohexane and water N2 - Hexagonal NaYF4 doped with 20 % Yb3+ and 2 % Er3+ is an efficient upconversion (UC) phosphor for the conversion of 976 nm excitation light to emission at 845 nm, 800 nm, 655 nm, 540 nm and 410 nm light. The emission behavior of nanoparticles made from this material is strongly influenced by particle size, surface chemistry, and microenvironment. Furthermore their UC emission originates from multiphotonic absorption processes, rendering the resulting luminescence spectra and intensities excitation power density (P) dependent. Therefore the rational design of efficient nm-sized UC particles e.g., for applications in the material and life sciences requires reliable spectroscopic tools for the characterization of the optical properties of these materials like the excitation power density (P)-dependent UC quantum yield (QYUC) in dispersion, which presents a measure for the efficiency of the conversion of absorbed into emitted photons. Up to date the P-dependent absolute measurement of QYUC in aqueous media with an excitation wavelength of 976 nm presents a considerable challenge due to the low absorption coefficients of the UC materials and the absorption of water at this wavelength. T2 - International Conference on Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology CY - Queenstown, New Zealand DA - 12.02.2017 KW - Upconversion KW - Quantum yield KW - Lifetime KW - Water KW - Cyclohexane PY - 2017 AN - OPUS4-40093 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kraft, Marco T1 - Absolute Photoluminescence Quantum Yield of Hexago-nal T2 - DPG Frühjahrstagung 2014 CY - Berlin, Germany DA - 2014-03-17 PY - 2014 AN - OPUS4-33659 LA - deu AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kraft, Marco A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Muhr, Verena A1 - Hirsch, Thomas A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Particle-size-dependent upconversion luminescence of NaYF4: Yb, Er nanoparticles in organic solvents and water at different excitation power densities N2 - A systematic study of the luminescence properties of monodisperse β-NaYF4: 20% Yb3+, 2% Er3+ upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) with sizes ranging from 12–43 nm is presented utilizing steady-state and time-resolved fluorometry. Special emphasis was dedicated to the absolute quantification of size- and environment-induced quenching of upconversion luminescence (UCL) by highenergy O–H and C–H vibrations from solvent and ligand molecules at different excitation power densities (P). In this context, the still-debated Population pathways of the 4F9/2 energy level of Er3+ were examined. Our results Highlight the potential of particle size and P value for color tuning based on the pronounced near-infrared emission of 12 nm UCNPs, which outweighs the red Er3+ emission under “strongly quenched” conditions and accounts for over 50% of total UCL in water. Because current rate equation models do not include such emissions, the suitability of these models for accurately simulating all (de)population pathways of small UCNPs must be critically assessed. Furthermore, we postulate population pathways for the 4F9/2 energy level of Er3+, which correlate with the size-, environment-, and P-dependent quenching states of the higher Er3+ energy levels. KW - Quantum Yield KW - Nanoparticle KW - Quenching KW - Upconversion PY - 2018 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-018-2159-9 VL - 11 IS - 12 SP - 6360 EP - 6374 PB - Tsinghua Univ. Press CY - Beijing AN - OPUS4-47172 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kraft, Marco T1 - Absolute Photoluminescence Quantum Yields and Lifetimes of 21 nm, 26 nm and 31 nm Sized Hexagonal ?-NaYF4: Er, Yb Upconversion Particles in Cyclohexane and Aqueous Solutions T2 - Adlershofer Forschungsforum 2015 CY - Berlin DA - 2015-11-11 PY - 2015 AN - OPUS4-34917 LA - deu AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Pohl, O. A1 - Kraft, Marco A1 - Kovac, J. A1 - Belec, B. A1 - Ponikvar-Svet, M. A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Lisjak, D. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Optically detected degradation of NaYF4:Yb,Tm-based upconversion nanoparticles in phosphate buffered saline solution N2 - In a proof-of-concept study, we assessed different analytical and spectroscopic parameters for stability screening of differently sized β-NaYF4:20 mol % Yb3+, 2 mol % Tm3+ upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) exemplarily in the bioanalytically relevant buffer phosphate buffered saline (PBS; pH 7.4) at 37 and 50 °C. This included the potentiometric determination of the amount of released fluoride ions, surface analysis with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence measurements. Based on these results, the luminescence lifetime of the 800 nm upconversion emission was identified as an Optimum parameter for stability screening of UCNPs and changes in particle surface chemistry. KW - Upconverion KW - Nanoparticle KW - Dissolution PY - 2017 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.6b03907 SN - 0743-7463 VL - 33 IS - 2 SP - 553 EP - 560 PB - ACS AN - OPUS4-39212 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Huang, K. A1 - Liu, H. A1 - Kraft, Marco A1 - Shikha, S. A1 - Zheng, X. A1 - Agren, H. A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Zhang, Y. T1 - A protected excitation-energy reservoir for efficient upconversion luminescence N2 - Lanthanide-doped upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) are of great interest for biomedical applications. Currently, the applicability of UCNP bionanotechnology is hampered by the generally low luminescence intensity of UCNPs and inefficient energy Transfer from UCNPs to surface-bound chromophores used e.g. for photodynamic therapy or analyte sensing. In this work, we address the low-Efficiency issue by developing versatile core-Shell nanostructures, where high-concentration sensitizers and activators are confined in the core and Shell Region of representative hexagonal NaYF2:Yb,Er UCNPs. After Doping concentration optimization, the sensitizer-rich core is able to harvest/accumulate more excitation energy and generate almost one order of Magnitude higher luminescence intesity than conventional homogeneously doped nanostructures. At the same time, the activator Ions located in the Shell enable a ~6 times more efficient resonant energy Transfer from UCNPs to surface-bound acceptor dye molecules due to the short distance between donor-acceptor pairs. Our work provides new insights into the rational design of UCNPs and will greatly encrease the General applicability of upconversion nanotechnologies. KW - Fluorescence KW - Lanthanide KW - Upconversion KW - Brightness KW - Quantification KW - Nanoparticle KW - Absolute fluorometry KW - NIR KW - IR KW - Quantum yield KW - Integrating sphere spectroscopy KW - Method KW - Energy transfer KW - Shell KW - Particle architecture PY - 2017 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c7nr06900f SN - 2040-3372 SN - 2040-3364 VL - 10 IS - 1 SP - 250 EP - 259 PB - The Royal Society of Chemistry AN - OPUS4-43893 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kraft, Marco A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Muhr, V. A1 - Hirsch, T. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Explaining the influence of dopant concentration and excitation power density on the luminescence and brightness of beta-NaYF_4:Yb~(3+),Er~(3+) nanoparticles: Measurements and simulations N2 - A systematic study of the luminescence properties of monodisperse β-NaYF4: 20% Yb3+, 2% Er3+ upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) with sizes ranging from 12–43 nm is presented utilizing steady-state and time-resolved fluorometry. Special emphasis was dedicated to the absolute quantification of size- and environment-induced quenching of upconversion luminescence (UCL) by highenergy O–H and C–H vibrations from solvent and ligand molecules at different excitation power densities (P). In this context, the still-debated Population pathways of the 4F9/2 energy level of Er3+ were examined. Our results highlight the potential of particle size and P value for color tuning based on the pronounced near-infrared emission of 12 nm UCNPs, which outweighs the red Er3+ emission under “strongly quenched” conditions and accounts for over 50% of total UCL in water. Because current rate equation models do not include such emissions, the suitability of these models for accurately simulating all (de)population pathways of small UCNPs must be critically assessed. Furthermore, we postulate population pathways for the 4F9/2 energy level of Er3+, which correlate with the size-, environment-, and P-dependent quenching states of the higher Er3+ energy levels. KW - Nanoparticle KW - Nanosensor KW - Fluorescence KW - Upconversion KW - Upconversion nanoparticle KW - NIR KW - Photophysics KW - Lanthanide KW - Size KW - Surface chemistry KW - Quantum yield KW - Mechanism KW - Lifetime KW - Decay kinetics KW - Quenching KW - Diameter KW - Cyclohexane KW - Water PY - 2018 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-018-2159-9 VL - 11/12 SP - 6360 EP - 6374 PB - Springer Nature AN - OPUS4-50307 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kraft, Marco T1 - Absolute photoluminescence quantum yields and Lifetimes of in Toluene Dispersed Hexagonal ß-NaYF4: x % Tm3+, 20 % Yb3+ Upconversion Nanoparticles T2 - DPG Frühjahrstagung 2015 CY - Berlin, Germany DA - 2015-03-15 PY - 2015 AN - OPUS4-33766 LA - deu AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kraft, Marco T1 - Particle Size Dependent Absolute Photoluminescence Quantum Yields and Lifetimes of Hexagonal beta-NaYF4: 2 % Er3+, 20 % Yb3+ Upconversion Nanoparticles in Cyclohexane and Water N2 - Hexagonal beta-NaYF₄ doped with 20 % Yb and 2 % Er is an efficient upconversion (UC) phosphor for the conversion of 976 nm to 845 nm, 655 nm and 540 nm light. The emission behavior of this material is strongly influenced by the particle size, surface chemistry, and microenvironment. Especially the design of nm-sized UC particles for bioanalytical applications requires reliable spectroscopic tools for the characterization of the optical properties of these materials like the UC quantum yield (QYUC) in aqueous media. The UC emission originates from multiphotonic absorption processes, rendering the QYUC excitation power density (P) dependent. The P-dependent absolute measurement of QYUC in aqueous media with an excitation wavelength of 976 nm presents a considerable challenge due to the low absorption coefficients of the UC materials and the absorption of water at this wavelength. Here, we present the P-dependent QYUC of 21 nm, 26 nm and 31 nm-sized NaYF₄ UC particles dispersed in cyclohexane and aqueous solutions, in view of bioanalytical applications. To gain a better insight of the photonic nature of the upconversion mechanism and the quenching processes involved, the luminescence decay behavior as well as the P-dependent red-to-green luminescence intensity ratios and slope factors of the different emission bands are studied in both solvents. These results present an important step to the rational design of brighter upconversion nanoparticles. T2 - UPCON conference 2016 CY - Wroclaw, Poland DA - 23.05.2016 KW - Water KW - Upconversion KW - Quantum Yield KW - Lifetime KW - Cyclohexane PY - 2016 AN - OPUS4-38131 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Muhr, V. A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Kraft, Marco A1 - Buchner, M. A1 - Baeumner, A. J. A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute A1 - Hirsch, T. T1 - Particle-size-dependent Förster resonance energy transfer from upconversion nanoparticles to organic dyes N2 - Upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) are attractive candidates for energy transfer-based analytical applications. In contrast to classical donor−acceptor pairs, these particles contain many emitting lanthanide ions together with numerous acceptor dye molecules at different distances to each other, strongly depending on the particle diameter. UCNPs with precisely controlled sizes between 10 and 43 nm were prepared and functionalized with rose bengal and sulforhodamine B by a ligand-exchange procedure. Timeresolved studies of the upconversion luminescence of the UCNP donor revealed a considerable shortening of the donor lifetime as a clear hint for Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET). FRET was most pronounced for 21 nm-sized UCNPs, yielding a FRET efficiency of 60%. At larger surface-to-volume ratios, the FRET efficiency decreased by an increasing competition of nonradiative surface deactivation. Such dye-UCNP architectures can also provide an elegant way to shift the UCNP emission color, since the fluorescence intensity of the organic dyes excited by FRET was comparable to that of the upconversion emission of smaller particles. KW - Upconversion KW - FRET KW - Organic dyes PY - 2017 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.6b04662 SN - 0003-2700 SN - 1520-6882 VL - 89 IS - 9 SP - 4868 EP - 4874 PB - ACS AN - OPUS4-40092 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Kraft, Marco T1 - Absolute Photoluminescence Quantum Yields of with Oleic Acid Stabalized Hexagonal ?-NaYF4: x % Tm3+, 20 % Yb3+ Upconversion Nanoparticles T2 - Adlershofer Forschungsforum CY - Berlin, Germany DA - 2014-11-11 PY - 2014 AN - OPUS4-33658 LA - deu AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kraft, Marco A1 - Würth, Christian A1 - Palo, Emilia A1 - Soukka, Tero A1 - Resch-Genger, Ute T1 - Colour-optimized quantum yields of Yb, Tm Co-doped upconversion nanocrystals N2 - Wepresent here a systematic analysis of the influence of Tm3+ Doping concentrations (xTm) on the excitation power (P)-dependent upconversion luminescence and -performance of hexagonal-Phase NaYF4: 20% Yb3+, xTm%Tm3+ upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) for xTm of 0.2, 0.5, 0.8, 1.2, and 2.0, respectively. Our results reveal the influence of these differentTm3+ doping concentrations with respect to optimized upconversion quantum yield (ΦUC) values of the variousTm3+ upconversion emission bands, with the highestΦUC values of theTm3+ emission bands above 700 nmresulting for different xTm values as theTm3+ emission bands below 700 nm. This underlines the potential ofTm3+ dopant concentration for colour tuning. Special emphasis was dedicated to the spectroscopic parameters that can be linked to the (de)population pathways of the variousTm3+ energy levels, like the P- and xTm-dependent slope factors and the intensity ratios of selected emission bands. The evaluation of all parameters indicates that not only energy transfer upconversion-, but also crossrelaxation processes between neighbouringTm3+ ions play a vital role in the (de)population of the excited energy levels of Yb3+, Tm3+ codoped nanocrystals. KW - Nano KW - Nanomaterial KW - Upconversion nanoparticle KW - Lanthanide KW - Photoluminescence KW - Mechanism KW - Quantum yield KW - Photophysics KW - Lifetime PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1088/2050-6120/ab023b SN - 2050-6120 VL - 7 IS - 2 SP - 024001, 1 EP - 6 PB - IOP AN - OPUS4-47420 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -