Robust and Stable Ratiometric Temperature Sensor Based on Zn–In–S Quantum Dots with Intrinsic Dual‐Dopant Ion Emissions

Abstract

Dual emission quantum dots (QDs) have attracted considerable interest as a novel phosphor for constructing ratiometric optical thermometry because of its self‐referencing capability. In this work, the exploration of codoped Zn–In–S QDs with dual emissions at ≈512 and ≈612 nm from intrinsic Cu and Mn dopants for ratiometric temperature sensing is reported. It is found that the dopant emissions can be tailored by adjusting the Mn‐to‐Cu concentration ratios, enabling the dual emissions in a tunable manner. The energy difference between the conduction band of the host and Cu dopant states is considered as the key for the occurrence of Mn ion emission. The as‐constructed QD ratiometric temperature sensor exhibits a totally robust stability with a fluctuation of ≈ICu/Itot versus times lower than 1% and almost no hysteresis in cycles over a broad window of 100–320 K. This discovery represents that the present cadmium‐free, intrinsic dual‐emitting codoped QDs can open a new door for the synthesis of novel QDs with stable dual emissions, which poise them well for challenging applications in optical nanothermometry.

Colloidal Gradated Alloyed (Cu)ZnInS/ZnS Core/Shell Nanocrystals with Tunable Optical Properties for Live Cell Optical Imaging

“…In contrast, group II‐III‐VI green chalcogenides (ZnInS and ZnInSe) are the most promising ternary optical material to serve as a host matrix for doping ions due to their composition tunable optical bandgap and high chemical stability ,. Doped II‐III‐VI ternary based chalcogenides have been shown to have potential applications in various fields such as LED, biological sensing, and bio‐labeling ,. Up to now, very limited studies have been addressed on transition metal ion doped ZnInS host NCs coated with ZnS system.…”

Ratiometric upconversion nanothermometry with dual emission at the same wavelength decoded via a time-resolved technique

“…The temperature-sensitive signal change can be measured using ratio instead of absolute photoluminescence intensities, to reduce the impact of extrinsic factors such as sensor concentration (f(c)), fluctuations of excitation power density (f(p)) or other local inhomogeneities that alter absolute intensities. Owing to minimizing the influence of f(p) and f(c), dual emission ratio luminescent nanothermometers have been widely developed and have attracted considerable interest [32][33][34][35][36][37] . However, f(a) and f(s) which depend on wavelength cannot be avoided due to the marked difference in wavelength between the ratiometric emissions ( Supplementary Table 1).…”

Tandem Förster Resonance Energy Transfer Induced Luminescent Ratiometric Thermometry in Dye‐Encapsulated Biological Metal–Organic Frameworks

“…Particularly, the I dye / I MOF of Acf@ZnBTCA system responded linearly to temperature within a wide range of 260–380 K, and the maximum S r could reach up to 5.001% K −1 . Although there are other types of LRT materials,[1a,4d,e,14] including one based on polymer nanoparticle showing a record S r of 15.4% K −1 ,[4c] the present Acf@ZnBTCA LRT is among the highest‐value sensitivity for MOF‐based LRT. Moreover, as a proof of concept of tandem FRET process, a mixed‐dye Acf‐RB@ZnBTCA system was realized, featuring a unique working mechanism and visible‐light excitation.…”