Citrate based sol–gel method is used to synthesize Gd₂O₃:RE³⁺ and GdAlO₃:RE³⁺ (RE = Eu, Dy) phosphors. In the present work, the phosphors are characterized using the techniques like X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) and photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL). Fluorescence confocal microscopy reveals the potential usage of phosphors in biological medium for biolabeling application. XRD patterns confirm the phase purity of Gd₂O₃ and GdAlO₃. The crystallite size and lattice parameters are estimated from XRD result. FTIR spectra are used to investigate the functional group present in the phosphor. The optical emission properties imply that the emission peak positions on Eu³⁺ or Dy³⁺ ion are size and host independent. Finally, RAW 264.7 macrophages cell line is used to test the bioimaging performance of the phosphors.
Keywords: Eu³⁺; Dy³⁺; Photoluminescence; Bioimaging; RAW 264.7.