Enhancement of X-ray-Excited Red Luminescence of Chromium-Doped Zinc Gallate via Ultrasmall Silicon Carbide Nanocrystals

Abstract

X-ray-activated near-infrared luminescent nanoparticles are considered as new alternative optical probes due to being free of autofluorescence, while both their excitation and emission possess a high penetration efficacy in vivo . Herein, we report silicon carbide quantum dot sensitization of trivalent chromium-doped zinc gallate nanoparticles with enhanced near-infrared emission upon X-ray and UV–vis light excitation. We have found that a ZnGa 2 O 4 shell is formed around the SiC nanoparticles during seeded hydrothermal growth, and SiC increases the emission efficiency up to 1 order of magnitude due to band alignment that channels the excited electrons to the chromium ion.

Optimization of Chromium-Doped Zinc Gallate Nanocrystals for Strong Near-Infrared Emission by Annealing

“…Despite the good optical properties of the hydrothermally synthesized ZGO:Cr nanoparticles, an enormous effort has been made to further improve the optical properties. The concentration of the Cr defect , and the presence of other dopants − play a critical role in the optical properties. Annealing is also a popular method to improve the physical, more specifically, the optical properties of doped ZGO NPs.…”

Color tunable aerogels/sponge-like structures developed from fine fiber membranes

“…6f shows two characteristic peaks of Zn 2+ at 1022 (2p 3/2 ) and 1045 eV (2p 1/2 ). 42 The XPS spectrum of Ga is shown in Fig. 6g having a characteristic peak at 18.8 eV which is attributed to Ga 3d.…”

“…The XPS spectrum of Figure 6. f shows two characteristic peaks of Zn 2+ at 1022 (2p 3/2 ) and 1045 eV (2p 1/2 ) 42 . XPS spectrum of Ga is shown in Figure 6.…”

Silicon Carbide Technology for Advanced Human Healthcare Applications

“…This research is specifically aimed at treating patients with such pernicious cancers as liver, pancreas, etc. So far, a very promising SiC-based coreshell nanostructure system (ZGC:SiC) has been developed and reported by Beke et al from this project [36]. The work by Salviati et al [2] provides an overview of the growth and optical properties, as well as some in vitro applications of core/shell 3C-SiC/SiO2 NWs and bare SiC NWs.…”

“…This research is specifically aimed at treating patients with such pernicious cancers as liver, pancreas, etc. So far, a very promising SiC-based coreshell nanostructure system (ZGC:SiC) has been developed and reported by Beke et al from this project [ 36 ].…”