Lanthanide doped lead-free double perovskites as the promising next generation ultra-broadband light sources

Band gap engineering and photoluminescence tuning in halide double perovskites

Halide double perovskites (HDPs) present a convenient alternative to the unstable and toxic lead halide perovskites for various optoelectronic applications. Because of their compositional and structural tunability, many HDP phases have been synthesized in the past decades. While efficient photovoltaic applications remain largely out of reach for the HDP phases due to their wide band gaps and structures with pseudoisolated metal centers, their electronic structures favor light conversion applications. Since the field of HDP witnesses rapid growth and development, this article is aimed at providing a brief snapshot of the recent advances on all-inorganic HDPs, primarily focusing on the relationship between their compositions and optical properties, and some aspects of their applications for visible light conversion.

Toward Ultra-High Sensitivity Optical Thermometers and Bright Yellow LEDs Based on Phonon-Assisted Energy Transfer in Rare Earth-Doped La2ZnTiO6 Double Perovskite

Double perovskites, a class of ceramic oxides with unique crystal structures and diverse physical properties, show promise for various technological applications including solar cells, photodetectors, and light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Despite limited research on rare earth-doped double perovskites, leveraging their ultrahigh luminous efficiency to achieve bright yellow LED emission and addressing energy transfer challenges between Yb3+ and Nd3+ ions in double perovskite La2ZnTiO6 with moderate phonon energy are explored in this work. Through phonon-assisted energy transfer, an ultrasensitive optical thermometer covering a wide temperature range is developed by utilizing the different temperature responses of Er3+ emission in the visible light region and Nd3+ emission in the near-infrared region based on the luminescence intensity ratio (LIR). All the results demonstrate that the rare earth (Yb-Er, Yb-Nd, and Yb-Nd-Er)-doped La2ZnTiO6 phosphors can be effectively utilized for ultrabright LED illumination and ultrahigh sensitivity self-calibrated temperature sensing. This research underscores the significance of phonon-assisted energy transfer in improving material properties and provides valuable insights for the advancement of multifunctional materials.

Near-Infrared Circularly Polarized Luminescent Physical Unclonable Functions

Distinguished from traditional physical unclonable functions (PUFs), optical PUFs derive their encoded information from the optical properties of materials, offering distinct advantages, including solution processability, material versatility, and tunable luminescence performance. However, existing research on optical PUFs has predominantly centered on visible photoluminescence, while advanced optical PUFs based on higher-level covert light remain unexplored. In this study, we present optical PUFs based on the utilization of the covert light of near-infrared circularly polarized luminescence (NIR-CPL). This interesting property is achieved by incorporating Yb-doped metal halide perovskite nanocrystals (Yb-PeNCs) possessing NIR emission property into chiral imprinted photonic (CIP) films. By employing a solvent immersion method, we successfully integrated Yb-PeNCs into these CIP films, thereby creating an optically unclonable surface. The resulting NIR-CPL emission adds a layer of advanced security to the optical PUF systems. These findings underscore the potential of solution-processable chiral films to play a pivotal role in advancing the next generation of PUFs.

Lanthanide Doping into All-Inorganic Heterometallic Halide Layered Double Perovskite Nanocrystals for Multimodal Visible and Near-Infrared Emission

The introduction of lanthanide ions (Ln3+) into all-inorganic lead-free halide perovskites has captured significant attention in optoelectronic applications. However, doping Ln3+ ions into heterometallic halide layered double perovskite (LDP) nanocrystals (NCs) and their associated doping mechanisms remain unexplored. Herein, we report the first colloidal synthesis of Ln3+ (Yb3+, Er3+)-doped LDP NCs utilizing a modified hot-injection method. The resulting NCs exhibit efficient near-infrared (NIR) photoluminescence in both NIR-I and NIR-II regions, achieved through energy transfer down-conversion mechanisms. Density functional theory calculations reveal that Ln3+ dopants preferentially occupy the Sb3+ cation positions, resulting in a disruption of local site symmetry of the LDP lattices. By leveraging sensitizations of intermediate energy levels, we delved into a series of Ln3+-doped Cs4M(II)Sb2Cl12 (M(II): Cd2+ or Mn2+) LDP NCs via co-doping strategies. Remarkably, we observe a brightening effect of the predark states of Er3+ dopant in the Er3+-doped Cs4M(II)Sb2Cl12 LDP NCs owing to the Mn component acting as an intermediate energy bridge. This study not only advances our understanding of energy transfer mechanisms in doped NCs but also propels all-inorganic LDP NCs for a wider range of optoelectronic applications.

Mn-Doped M2CdCl4 (M = CH3NH3+, C2H8N+, and C3H10N+) Layered Hybrid Perovskite and Its Flexible Film Based on Simple Mechanochemical Synthesis

Layered hybrid perovskites show significant advantages in the field of optoelectronics. However, the low quantum efficiency and complex preparation methods limit their applications. In this work, we developed a series of perovskite powders with a two-dimensional (2D) layered structure of organic-inorganic hybrid metal halides M2CdCl4:x%Mn (M = CH3NH3+, C2H8N+, C3H10N+) via facile mechanochemical methods. The prepared manganese Mn-doped MA2CdCl4 produces orange emission at 605 nm under both 254 and 420 nm excitation, which originates from a dual excitation channel competition mechanism, and its excitation channel could be changed with the increase of Mn2+ ion concentration. Typically, MA2CdCl4:20%Mn powder exhibits high photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) close to 90% at 605 nm due to the organic amine ions enlarging the Mn-Mn interlayer distances. In addition, we prepared MA2CdCl4:x%Mn@PVA flexible films, which also exhibit good luminescence at 254 nm excitation and were unexpectedly found to have a better response to Cs+, which could be a candidate for anticounterfeiting applications.

Sb-Doped Cs3 TbCl6 Nanocrystals for Highly Efficient Narrow-Band Green Emission and X-Ray Imaging

Metal halide nanocrystals (NCs) with high photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) are desirable for lighting, display, and X-ray detection. Herein, the novel lanthanide-based halide NCs are committed to designing and optimizing the optical and scintillating properties, so as to unravel the PL origin, exciton dynamics, and optoelectronic applications. Sb-doped zero-dimensional (0D) Cs3 TbCl6 NCs exhibit a green emission with a narrow full width of half maximum of 8.6 nm, and the best PLQY of 48.1% is about three times higher than that of undoped NCs. Experiments and theoretical calculations indicate that 0D crystalline and electronic structures make the exciton highly localized on [TbCl6 ]3- octahedron, which boosts the Cl- -Tb3+ charge transfer process, thus resulting in bright Tb3+ emission. More importantly, the introduction of Sb3+ not only facilitates the photon absorption transition, but also builds an effective thermally boosting energy transfer channel assisted by [SbCl6 ]3- -induced self-trapped state, which is responsible for the PL enhancement. The high luminescence efficiency and negligible self-absorption of the Cs3 TbCl6 : Sb nanoscintillator enable a more sensitive X-ray detection response compared with undoped sample. The study opens a new perspective to deeply understand the excited state dynamics of metal halide NCs, which helps to design high-performance luminescent lanthanide-based nanomaterials.

Atomic-scale imaging of ytterbium ions in lead halide perovskites

Lanthanide-doped lead halide perovskites have demonstrated great potential for photoelectric applications. However, there is a long-standing controversy about the existence of lanthanide ions, e.g., whether the doping of Ln3+ is successful or not; the substituting sites of Ln3+ in lead halide perovskites are unclear. We directly identify the doped Yb3+ in CsPbCl3 perovskites by using the state-of-the-art transmission electron microscopy and three-dimensional atom probe tomography at atomic scale. Different from the previous assumptions and/or results, we evidence that Yb3+ simultaneously replace Pb2+ and occupy the lattice interstitial sites. Furthermore, we directly observe the cluster phenomenon of CsPbCl3 single crystal at near atomic scale. Density functional theory modeling further confirms and explains the mechanisms of our findings. Our findings thus provide an atomic-level understanding of the doping mechanism in perovskites and will stimulate a further thinking of the doping effect on the performance of perovskites.

Halide Double Perovskite Nanocrystals Doped with Rare-Earth Ions for Multifunctional Applications

Most lead-free halide double perovskite materials display low photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) due to the indirect bandgap or forbidden transition. Doping is an effective strategy to tailor the optical properties of materials. Herein, efficient blue-emitting Sb³⁺ -doped Cs₂ NaInCl₆ nanocrystals (NCs) are selected as host, rare-earth (RE) ions (Sm³⁺ , Eu³⁺ , Tb³⁺ , and Dy³⁺ ) are incorporated into the host, and excellent PLQY of 80.1% is obtained. Femtosecond transient absorption measurement found that RE ions not only served as the activator ions but also filled the deep vacancy defects. Anti-counterfeiting, optical thermometry, and white-light-emitting diodes (WLEDs) are exhibited using these RE ions-doped halide double perovskite NCs. For the optical thermometry based on Sm³⁺ -doped Cs₂ NaInCl₆ :Sb³⁺ NCs, the maximum relative sensitivity is 0.753% K^-1 , which is higher than those of most temperature-sensing materials. Moreover, the WLED fabricated by Sm³⁺ -doped Cs₂ NaInCl₆ :Sb³⁺ NCs@PMMA displays CIE color coordinates of (0.30, 0.28), a luminous efficiency of 37.5 lm W^-1 , a CCT of 8035 K, and a CRI over 80, which indicate that Sm³⁺ -doped Cs₂ NaInCl₆ :Sb³⁺ NCs are promising single-component white-light-emitting phosphors for next-generation lighting and display technologies.

A universal hydrochloric acid-assistant powder-to-powder strategy for quick and mass preparation of lead-free perovskite microcrystals

Lead-free halide perovskite materials possess low toxicity, broadband luminescence and robust stability compared with conventional lead-based perovskites, thus holding great promise for eyes-friendly white light LEDs. However, the traditionally used preparation methods with a long period and limited product yield have curtailed the commercialization of these materials. Here we introduce a universal hydrochloric acid-assistant powder-to-powder strategy which can accomplish the goals of thermal-, pressure-free, eco-friendliness, short time, low cost and high product yield, simultaneously. The obtained Cs2Na0.9Ag0.1In0.95Bi0.05Cl6 microcrystals exhibit bright self-trapped excitons emission with quantum yield of (98.3 ± 3.8)%, which could retain (90.5 ± 1.3)% and (96.8 ± 0.8)% after continuous heating or ultraviolet-irradiation for 1000 h, respectively. The phosphor converted-LED exhibited near-unity conversion efficiency from ultraviolet chip to self-trapped excitons emission at ~200 mA. Various ions doping (such as Cs2Na0.9Ag0.1InCl6:Ln3+) and other derived lead-free perovskite materials (such as Cs2ZrCl6 and Cs4MnBi2Cl12) with high luminous performance are all realized by our proposed strategy, which has shown excellent availability towards commercialization.

Competing Energy Transfer in Two-Dimensional Mn2+-Doped BDACdBr4 Hybrid Layered Perovskites with Near-Unity Photoluminescence Quantum Yield

Two-dimensional (2D) hybrid layered perovskites (HLPs) have attracted extensive attention due to their excellent optoelectronic properties. Herein, we successfully prepared high-quality Mn-doped BDACdBr₄ (BDA = NH₂(CH₂)₄NH₂, butylene diammonium) HLP single crystals (SCs). The incorporation of Mn²⁺ ions modulates the electronic band structure of BDACdBr₄ perovskites and tailors the energy transfer process of excited states. A near-unity photoluminescence (PL) quantum yield of 96% from the Mn²⁺ emission at 608 nm is achieved. Excitation wavelength-dependent spectroscopic characterizations help to clarify the energy transfer mechanism of Mn-doped BDACdBr₄, in which competing PL from the ³E_g → ¹A_1g transition of Cd²⁺ and the ⁴T₁(G) → ⁶A₁(S) transition of Mn²⁺ dopants is observed. Temperature-dependent PL spectroscopic characterizations indicate that the efficient energy transfer from BDACdBr₄ perovskite host to Mn²⁺ dopants requires thermal activation to overcome a potential barrier. This work provides new insight into the photophysics and optical properties of 2D HLPs, especially the influence of Mn²⁺ doping on competing energy transfer in hybrid luminescent materials.