Lanthanide-based luminescent nanoparticles that are thermally responsive can be used to probe temperature changes at a nanoscale regime. However, materials that can work as both a nanothermometer and a catalyst are limited. Herein, we show that covalent organic frameworks (COFs), which is an emerging class of porous crystalline materials, can be grown around lanthanide nanoparticles to create unique core-shell nanostructures. In this way, the COF (shell) supports copper metal ions as catalytic sites and simultaneously lanthanide nanoparticles (β-NaLuF4:Gd,Er,Yb-core) locally measure the temperature during the catalytic reaction. Moreover, β-NaLuF4:Gd,Er,Yb nanoparticles are upconverting materials and hence can be excited at longer wavelengths (975 nm), which do not affect the catalysis substrates or the COF. As a proof-of-principle, a three-component addition reaction of benzaldehyde, indole, and malononitrile was studied. The local temperature was probed using luminescence nanothermometry during the catalytic reaction.
Keywords: catalysis; core−shell structures; covalent organic frameworks (COFs); hybrid nanomaterials; lanthanide nanothermometers.