Bi-functional NaLuF4:Gd3+/Yb3+/Er3+ nanocrystals: hydrothermal synthesis, optical and magnetic properties

Magnetic-fluorescent lanthanide doped sodium lutetium fluoride (NaLuF4:Yb3+/Er3+/Gd3+) nanocrystals were synthesized via facile hydrothermal method by varying concentration of Gd3+. Powder X-ray powder diffraction (PXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM),transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), particle size by dynamic light scattering (DLS),photoluminescence (PL) and magnetic studies were used to characterize the structural, optical and magnetic properties of these nanocrystals. Powder X-ray diffraction  results  signified  good  crystallinity  and  effective  doping  in  sodium lutetium fluoride nanocrystals. The SEM and TEM micrographs defined their flower like morphology. The EDS was performed to investigate the presence of dopant. The emission intensities of the prepared samples are strongly controlled by particle sizes which are influenced by co-doping NaLuF4 nanocrystals with varying concentration of Gd3+. Besides the efficient optical properties, Gd3+ doped NaLuF4 nanocrystals exhibited paramagnetic behavior at room temperature with magnetization of up to 8.24× 10-3 emu g-1 at 15 kOe.