We used the synthesized dinaphthylmethane (Hdnm) ligand whose absorption extends to the visible-light wavelength, to prepare a family of ternary lanthanide complexes, named as [Ln(dnm)3 phen] (Ln = Sm, Nd, Yb, Er, Tm, Pr). The properties of these complexes were investigated by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, diffuse reflectance (DR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analyses, and excitation and emission spectroscopy. Generally, excitation with visible light is much more advantageous than UV excitation. Importantly, upon excitation with visible light (401-460 nm), the complexes show characteristic visible (Sm(3+)) as well as near-infrared (Sm(3+), Nd(3+), Yb(3+), Er(3+), Tm(3+), Pr(3+)) luminescence of the corresponding lanthanide ions, attributed to the energy transfer from the ligands to the lanthanide ions, an antenna effect. Now, using these near-infrared luminescent lanthanide complexes, the luminescent spectral region from 800 to 1650 nm, can be covered completely, which is of particular interest for biomedical imaging applications, laser systems, and optical amplification applications.
Keywords: NIR luminescence; energy transfer; lanthanide complex; visible luminescence; visible-light excitation.
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