Fluorescence techniques are known for their high sensitivity and are widely used as analytical tools and detection methods for product and process control, material sciences, environmental and biotechnical analysis, molecular genetics, cell biology, medical diagnostics, and drug screening. For routine measurements by fluorescence techniques the existence of an improved quality assurance is one of the basic needs. According to DIN/ISO 17025 certified standards are used for fluorescence diagnostics having the drawback of giving relative values only. Typical requirements onto fluorescence reference materials or standards deal with the verification of the instrument performance as well as the improvement of the data comparability. Especially for biomedical applications fluorescence labels are used for the detection of proteins. In particular these labels consist of nano crystalline materials like CdS and CdSe. The field of Non-Cadmium containing materials is under investigation. In order to evaluate whether glass based materials can be used as standards it is necessary to calculate absolute values like absorption/excitation cross sections or relative quantum yields. This can be done using different quantities of dopands in glass, glass ceramics or crystals. The investigated materials are based on different types of glass, silicate, phosphate and boron glass, which play a dominant role for the absorption and emission mechanism. Additional to the so-called elementary fluorescence properties induced by raw earth elements the formation of defects lead to higher cross sections additionally. The main investigations deal with wavelength accuracy and lifetime of doped glasses, glass ceramics and crystalline samples. Moreover intensity patterns, homogeneity aspects and photo stability will be discussed.
Fluorescence techniques are known for their high sensitivity and are widely used as analytical tools and detection methods for product and process control, material sciences, environmental and bio-technical analysis, molecular genetics, cell biology, medical diagnostics, and drug screening. According to DIN/ISO 17025 certified standards are used for fluorescence diagnostics having the drawback of giving relative values for fluorescence intensities only. Therefore reference materials for a quantitative characterization have to be related directly to the materials under investigation. In order to evaluate these figures it is necessary to calculate absolute numbers like absorption/excitation cross sections and quantum yield. This can be done for different types of dopands in different materials like glass, glass ceramics, crystals or nano crystalline material embedded in polymer matrices. Based on the optical spectroscopy data we will discuss options for characteristic doped glasses and glass ceramics with respect to scattering and absorption regime. It has shown recently for YAG:Ce glass ceramics that for a proper determination of the quantum efficiency in these highly scattering media a reference material with similar scattering and fluorescent properties is required. This may be performed using the emission decay measurement diagnostics, where the decay time is below 100 ns. In this paper we present first results of these aspects using well performing LUMOGEN RED organic pigments for a comparison of mainly transparent glass with glass ceramics doped with various amounts of dopands e.g. ions of raw earth elements and transition metals. The LUMOGEN red is embedded in silica and polyurethane matrices. Characterisations on wavelength accuracy and lifetime for different environmental conditions (temperature, UV irradiation) have been performed. Moreover intensity patterns and results for homogeneity, isotropy, photo and thermal stability will be discussed. In a next step we will show the transfer of the characterisation methods to inorganic fluophores (YAG:Ce) in silicon. Fluorescence (steady state, decay time) and absorption (remission, absorption) spectroscopy working in different temperature regimes (10 - 350 K) are employed diagnostic methods in order to get a microscopic view of the relevant physical processes and to prove the correctness of the obtained data. The work is funded by BMBF under project number 13N8849.
The widespread use and acceptance of fluorescence techniques especially in regulated areas like medical diagnostics is closely linked to standardization concepts that guarantee and improve the comparability and reliability of fluorescence measurements. At the core of such concepts are dependable fluorescence standards that are preferably certified. The ever rising interest in fluorescence measurements in the near-infrared (NIR) spectral region renders the availability of spectral and intensity standards for this wavelength region increasingly important. This encouraged us to develop approaches to solid NIR standards based upon dye-doped polymers and assess their applicationrelevant properties in comparison to metal ion-doped glasses. The overall goal is here to provide inexpensive, easily fabricated, and robust internal and external calibration tools for a broad variety of fluorescence instruments ranging e.g. from spectrofluorometers over fluorescence microscopes to miniaturized fluorescence sensors.
To improve the reliability of fluorescence data in the life and material sciences and to enable accreditation of fluorescence techniques, standardization concepts are required that guarantee and improve the comparability of fluorescence measurements. At the core of such concepts are simple and evaluated fluorescence standards for the consideration of instrument-specific spectral and intensity distortions of measured signals and for instrument performance validation (IPV). Similarly in need are fluorescence intensity standards for the quantification from measured intensities and for signal referencing, thereby accounting for excitation light-induced intensity fluctuations. These standards should be preferably certified, especially for use in regulated areas like medical diagnostics. This encouraged us to develop liquid and solid standards for different fluorescence parameters and techniques for use under routine measurement conditions in different formates. Special emphasis was dedicated to the determination and control of the spectral responsivity of detection systems, wavelength accuracy, homogeneity of illumination, and intensity referencing for e.g. spectrofluorometers, fluorescence sensors and confocal laser scanning fluorescence microscopes. Here, we will present design concepts and examples for mono- and multifunctional fluorescence standards that provide traceability to radiometric units and present a first step towards a toolbox of standards.
Fluorescence techniques are known for their high sensitivity and are widely used as analytical tools, detection methods and imaging applications for product and process control, material sciences, environmental and bio-technical analysis, molecular genetics, cell biology, medical diagnostics, and drug screening. According to DIN/ISO 17025 certified standards are used for steady state fluorescence diagnostics, a method having the drawback of giving relative values for fluorescence intensities only. Therefore reference materials for a quantitative characterization have to be related directly to the materials under investigation. In order to evaluate these figures it is necessary to calculate absolute numbers such as absorption/excitation cross sections and quantum yield. This has been done for different types of dopands in different materials such as glass, glass ceramics, crystals or nano crystalline material embedded in polymer matrices. Samples doped with several fluophores of different emission wavelengths and decay times are required for fluorescent multiplexing applications. Decay times shorter than 100 ns are of special interest. In addition, a proper knowledge is necessary of quantum efficiency in highly scattering media. Recently, quantum efficiency in YAG:Ce glass ceramics has been successfully investigated. Glass and glass ceramics doped with threefold charged rare earth elements are available. However, these samples have the disadvantage of emission decay times much longer than 1 microsecond, due to the excitation and emission of their optical forbidden electronic transitions. Therefore first attempts have been made to produce decay-time standards based on organic and inorganic fluophores. Stable LUMOGEN RED pigments and YAG:Ce phosphors are diluted simultaneously in silicone matrices using a wide range of concentrations between 0.0001 and 2 wt%. Organic LUMOGEN RED has decay times in the lower nanosecond range with a slight dependency on concentration and temperature. In addition, the well-known decay properties of inorganic YAG:Ce are observed also embedded in silicone matrix. Luminescent silicone layers are obtained with thicknesses between 150 and 300 m and no change of decay time, which has been determined to be between 60 and 62 ns. Finally, first results are shown for fluorescent CaF2:Pb glass ceramics embedded in a silicate glass matrix. Wavelength accuracy and lifetime are characterized for different environmental conditions such as temperature treatment and UV irradiation. Moreover, intensity patterns, e.g. line profiles and results, are discussed on homogeneity and photo and thermal stability, respectively. Fluorescence (steady state, decay time) and absorption (remission, absorption) spectroscopy are employed as diagnostic methods to get a microscopic view of the relevant physical processes. The work is funded by BMBF under project number 13N8849.