Effects of silver nanoparticles on the enhancement of up conversion and infrared emission in Er3+/Yb3+ co-doped phosphate glasses

Abstract Silver nanoparticles (NPs) were embedded into Er3+/Yb3+ co-doped phosphate glasses prepared using melt-quenching technique. Detailed structure and optical characterizations have been carried out. Homogeneous distribution of spherical Ag NPs is shown from the transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The EDX analysis spectrum shows the presence of Ag element. The observed surface plasmon resonance (SPR) band of Ag NPs appears in the range 420–570 nm. The influence of Ag NPs on the fluorescence of Er3+ under the excitation of 488 nm was investigated. The fluorescence increased with the increasing of Ag NPs concentration which is attributed to the enhanced local electric field around Er3+ induced by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect of silver NPs. However, the increase in the Ag NPs concentration reduces the luminescence intensity due to the quenching effect which is attributed to the energy transfer from Er3+ and Yb3+ ions to silver NPs. The blue, green and red up conversion emissions were observed and the effect of the Ag NPs on the up conversion enhancement was investigated. The influence of the temperature on the PL intensity and the PL lifetime of PEr05Y1Ag1.5 glass sample were studied in the temperature range of 20–220 K.