Spectroscopic properties and dynamic analysis of three-photon quantum-cutting luminescence in Er doped NaYF4 nanoparticles

Abstract Spectroscopic properties and dynamic analysis play a significant role during the design and development of novel luminescent materials. In this work, Er3+ doped NaYF4 nanoparticles were successfully synthesized by coprecipitation method. The absorption spectrum, fluorescence spectra, and decay curves were measured at room temperature. The spectroscopic properties, including the radiative and nonradiative transition probability, fluorescent branch ratio, cross-relaxation rate and the fluorescence lifetime, were calculated based on the Judd-Ofelt theory. Furthermore, the rate equation models were established to analyze the dynamic processes of three-photon near-infrared quantum cutting luminescence. The time-dependent population densities of excited levels of Er3+ ions were simulated and the theoretical quantum efficiency was calculated to be 252.40%, which is consistent with our experimental results.