Controlling upconversion luminescence patterns in space with red emission enhancement from a single fluoride microcrystal by tuning the excitation mode

Abstract

The ability to control the upconversion (UC) luminescence patterns in space from lanthanide-doped UC luminescence materials is very important for many applications including three-dimensional color displays, optical waveguides and optical communication. In this work, the fascinating UC luminescence patterns could be adjusted from the blue or green flower-like emission pattern to the red flame-like irradiation pattern with a red luminescence enhancement from a single β-NaYF₄:Yb³⁺/(Tm³⁺ or Er³⁺) microcrystal (MC) by varying the excitation position. The red-to-blue (R/B) and the red-to-green (R/G) emission intensity ratios from the single MC particle that the focal point position of excitation NIR laser is on the side lace are much stronger than that in the case of the focused laser beam on the center. We think that the physical mechanism from the changes in the luminescence pattern and the emission intensity ratio is explained by the optical waveguide effect based on the total reflection effect. These results provide a new strategy for facilitating fundamental investigations of the UC micro/nano-materials, which will lead to promising applications in three-dimensional color display, optical waveguides and optical communication.