Manipulation of upconversion (UC) emission is of particular importance for multiplexed bioimaging. Here, we precisely manipulate the UC color output by utilizing the phonon-assisted energy back transfer (EBT) process in ultra-small (sub-10 nm) Gd2O3:Yb(3+)/Er(3+) UC nanoparticles (UCNPs). We synthesized the Gd2O3:Yb(3+)/Er(3+) UCNPs by adopting the laser ablation in liquid (LAL) technique. The synthesized Gd2O3:Yb(3+)/Er(3+) UCNPs are small spherical and monoclinic structures. Continuous color-tunable (from green to red) UC fluorescence emission is achieved by increasing the concentration of Yb(3+) ions from 0 to 15 mol%. A phonon-assisted energy back transfer (EBT) process from Er(3+) ((4)S3/2 → (4)I13/2) to nearby Yb(3+) ((2)F7/2 → (2)F5/2), which can significantly enhance red emission at 672 nm and decrease green emission, is responsible for the color-tunable UC emission by increasing the Yb(3+) concentration in Gd2O3:Yb(3+)/Er(3+) UC nanoparticles.

Europium-doped gadolinium oxide (GdO:Eu) nanoparticles (NPs) with favorable properties for use in fluorescence imaging (FI) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) dual-modal contrast agent has attracted intense attention in biomedical applications. However, limited information is available on balancing FI and MRI by adjusting doping concentrations. In this study, GdO:Eu NPs with various Eu doping concentrations were prepared by the facile and general technique of laser ablation in liquid (LAL). The influence of Eu-doping concentration on fluorescence properties and longitudinal relaxivity were investigated. The optimum Eu-doping concentration with both high fluorescence properties and longitudinal relaxivity was determined to be 5%. The characterization of the structure, morphology, and composition shows that these NPs possess good crystallinity and excellent dispersibility. These results show that GdO:Eu NPs prepared by LAL are promising candidates for highly efficient FI and MRI dual-modal contrast agents.

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