Bright and Efficient Sensitized Near-Infrared Photoluminescence from an Organic Neodymium-Containing Composite Material System

Intense organic neodymium (Nd3+) emission is obtained with near-infrared (NIR) emission equivalent in intensity to that of an organic semiconductor emitting material. The advantage of Nd3+ emission is its narrow line width and NIR emission, which is enhanced by ∼3000 times at low excitation power through an efficient sensitization effect from a composite organic sensitizer. This performance is optimized at high concentrations of Nd3+ ions, and the organic perfluorinated system provides the ion excitations with a quantum efficiency of ∼40%. The material system is applicable to thin films that are compatible with integrated optics applications.