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Title: Interference-enhanced infrared-to-visible upconversion in solid-state thin films sensitized by colloidal nanocrystals

Journal Article · · Applied Physics Letters
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4984136· OSTI ID:1466223

Infrared-to-visible photon upconversion has potential applications in photovoltaics, sensing, and bioimaging. In this paper, we demonstrate a solid-state thin-film device that utilizes sensitized triplet-triplet exciton annihilation, converting infrared photons absorbed by colloidal lead sulfide nanocrystals (NCs) into visible photons emitted from a luminescent dopant in rubrene at low incident light intensities. A typical bilayer device consisting of a monolayer of NCs and a doped film of rubrene is limited by low infrared absorption in the thin NC film. Here, we augment the bilayer with an optical spacer layer and a silver-film back reflector, resulting in interference effects that enhance the optical field and thus the absorption in the NC film. The interference-enhanced device shows an order-of-magnitude increase in the upconverted emission at the wavelength of λ = 610 nm when excited at λ = 980 nm. Finally, at incident light intensities above 1.1 W/cm2, the device attains maximum efficiency, converting (1.6 ± 0.2)% of absorbed infrared photons into higher-energy singlet excitons in rubrene.

Research Organization:
Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA (United States); Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC) (United States). Center for Excitonics (CE)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0001088
OSTI ID:
1466223
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1361912
Journal Information:
Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 110, Issue 21; ISSN 0003-6951
Publisher:
American Institute of Physics (AIP)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 29 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (5)

Future and challenges for hybrid upconversion nanosystems journal October 2019
Device model for pixelless infrared image up-converters based on polycrystalline graphene heterostructures journal January 2018
High-performance all-solution-processed quantum dot near-infrared-to-visible upconversion devices for harvesting photogenerated electrons journal November 2019
A perspective on triplet fusion upconversion: triplet sensitizers beyond quantum dots journal September 2019
Device model for pixelless infrared image up-converters based on polycrystalline graphene heterostructures text January 2017