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Enhanced upconversion luminescence through core/shell structures and its application for detecting organic dyes in opaque fishes

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Abstract

Here, we report the enhanced upconversion luminescence of NaLuF4:18%Yb3+,2%Er3+ through core/shell structures. Among NaYF4, NaGdF4, and NaLuF4 shells, the first one presents the highest efficiency. These upconversion fluorescent nanoprobes with an oleic acid/PEG hybrid ligand can efficiently capture Rhodamine B (RB) and sodium fluorescein (SF) in opaque fishes to present their residues in vivo through luminescence resonant energy transfer (LRET) processes. It can be confirmed based on LRET technology that no RB is absorbed by opaque fishes after incubating in the aqueous solution of 1 µg ml-1 RB for one day, while SF residue can be obviously detected after incubating in the aqueous solution of 1 µg ml-1 SF for one day. The merit of this LRET technology with the upconversion nanoparticle (UCNP) donor is ascribed to the deep penetration depth of the infrared pumping laser and high signal to noise ratio.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Information and Electrical Engineering, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, China

    Pan Hu, Xiaofeng Wu, Shigang Hu, Zaifang Xi & Yi Yu

  2. Department of Physics and Electrical Science, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, China

    Zenghui Chen, Gangtao Dai & Yunxin Liu

  3. College of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, China

    Huanyuan Yan

  4. INPAC-Institute for Nanoscale Physics and Chemistry, KU Leuven, Celestijnenlaan, 200D B-3001, Belgium

    Yunxin Liu

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  1. Pan Hu
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  2. Xiaofeng Wu
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Correspondence to Yunxin Liu.

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Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/C5PP00310E

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Hu, P., Wu, X., Hu, S. et al. Enhanced upconversion luminescence through core/shell structures and its application for detecting organic dyes in opaque fishes. Photochem Photobiol Sci 15, 260–265 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1039/c5pp00310e

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/c5pp00310e

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