Clean synthesis of Er, Yb doped fluorapatite upconversion luminescent nanoparticles through liquid phase pulsed laser ablation

Abstract The Er, Yb co-doped upconversion luminescent fluorapatite nanoparticle dispersed in water has been synthesized through liquid phase pulsed laser ablation (LPPLA). Fluorapatite is a highly biocompatible material and LPPLA is a clean procedure for the synthesis of nanoparticle colloidal solution. The synthesized material and synthesis method described here is striking in the case of biological applications. A transparent colloidal solution of nanoparticles of size 2–4 nm was obtained using this method. Synthesized colloidal solution showed a visible emission on IR excitation. Excitation power dependence on emission intensity was studied and found that absorption of two photons is involved in the emission of each photon. The synthesized biocompatible nanoparticles dispersed in water can be used for cell imaging applications.