Upconversion luminescence mechanisms of Er(3+) ions under excitation of an 800 nm laser.

The fundamental processes of upconversion (UC) emissions from trivalent lanthanide ions are essential for designing and improving the performance of UC materials. However, UC mechanisms involve multiple processes in one system because of the abundant energy states, which make it a challenge to exclusively verify and quantitatively evaluate the dominant process. In this paper, the mechanisms of green and red emissions in Er(3+) doped NaYF4-glass ceramics under 800 nm continuous wave laser excitation are studied via excitation power-dependence, polarization-dependence, and the transient evolution. These UC emission properties are compared with those under single-/two-wavelength excitation in a pump-probe system of 800 nm and 1500 nm femtosecond lasers. These results indicate that the excited state absorption pathway of (4)I15/2 → (4)I9/2 → (4)I13/2 → (2)H11/2/(4)S3/2 plays the dominant role in the emission of the green band, and the cross relaxation pathway of (4)I11/2 + (4)I13/2 → (4)F9/2 + (4)I15/2 plays the main role in the emission of the red band.