Parametric study of up-conversion efficiency in Er-doped ceria nanoparticles under 780nm excitation

This paper presents a new parametric study of the optical up-conversion process in ceria nanoparticles doped with erbium (Er-CeO2 NPs). Under 780 nm excitation, both the possible transitions that occur between Er3+ ions and up-conversion rate model simulation are presented. Ceria nanoparticles (CeO2 NPs) doped with erbium are experimentally synthesized using chemical precipitation technique with post-annealing up to 900 °C with different weight ratios of erbium dopant. We found that the synthesized nanoparticles can emit both green and red emissions under 780 nm laser excitation via two-photon absorption mechanism. Then, the quantum efficiencies of both colored emissions are theoretically investigated with different parameters related to the optical conversion process and the studied material. In addition, this work offer suggested ranges for the optimum values of the studied parameters which could improve the quantum yield efficiency. Einstein coefficients for erbium hosted in ceria are discussed in details using Judd–Ofelt analysis. This promising study could be helpful in improving the up-conversion efficiency of Er-ceria nanoparticles for applications such as bio-imaging and optical-based sensors