Multifunctional near-infrared emitting Cr3+-doped Mg4Ga8Ge2O20 particles with long persistent and photostimulated persistent luminescence, and photochromic properties

Here we report a series of multifunctional Cr3+-doped magnesium gallogermanate particles. Several minutes of ultraviolet (UV) light excitation can lead to strong near-infrared (NIR) long persistent luminescence (LPL) at 600-850 nm with a long lasting time of at least 25 h. After the disappearance of LPL, NIR photostimulated persistent luminescence (PSPL) can be rejuvenated repeatedly several times by an external photostimulus (visible or NIR light). Meanwhile, the material shows photochromic (PC) properties, i.e., the surface color can change reversibly between white/pale green and rosybrown with high fatigue resistance by alternating UV and visible light irradiation. When the temperature is increased to 300 degrees C, the induced rosybrown surface color can also be bleached. This new multifunctional material has potential applications in a wide range of fields, such as in vivo bio-imaging, optical information write-in and read-out media, erasable optical memory media and optical sensors. The continuous trap distribution and modulation were characterized. The optimum trap depth was determined to be 0.51-0.86 eV. In addition, we gained insight into the mechanism of multifunctional properties and the interconnection between them.