Superfluorescent upconversion nanoparticles as an emerging second generation quantum technology material

Tools

MacKenzie, Lewis E. and Kirton, Peter (2025) Superfluorescent upconversion nanoparticles as an emerging second generation quantum technology material. Nanoscale Horizons, 10 (7). pp. 1242-1249. ISSN 2055-6764 (https://doi.org/10.1039/D4NH00651H)

[thumbnail of MacKenzie-etal-NH-2025-Superfluorescent-upconversion-nanoparticles-as-an-emerging-second-generation]
Preview
 Text. Filename: MacKenzie-etal-NH-2025-Superfluorescent-upconversion-nanoparticles-as-an-emerging-second-generation.pdf
Final Published Version
License: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 logo
Download (927kB)| Preview

Abstract

Superfluorescence (SF) in lanthanide doped upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) is a room-temperature quantum phenomenon, first discovered in 2022. In a SF process, the many emissive lanthanide ions within a single UCNP are coherently coupled by an ultra-short (ns or fs) high-power excitation laser pulse. This leads to a superposition of excited emissive states which decrease the emissive lifetime of the UCNP by a factor proportional to the square of the number of lanthanide ions which are coherently coupled. This results in a dramatic decrease in UCNP emission lifetime from the μs regime to the ns regime. Thus SF offers a tantalizing prospect to achieving superior upconversion photon flux in upconversion materials, with potential applications such as imaging and sensing. This perspective article contextualizes how SF-UCNPs can be regarded as a second generation quantum technology, and notes several challenges, opportunities, and open questions for the development of SF-UCNPs.

ORCID iDs

MacKenzie, Lewis E. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8151-0525 and Kirton, Peter ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3915-1098;
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)