Shell-Isolated Nanoparticle-Enhanced Phosphorescence

Abstract

The emerging field of plasmonics has promoted applications of optical technology, especially in plasmon-enhanced spectroscopy (PES). However, in plasmon-enhanced fluorescence (PEF), "metal loss" could significantly quench the fluorescence during the process, which dramatically limits its applications in analysis and high-resolution imaging. In this report, silver core silica shell-isolated nanoparticles (Ag@SiO₂ NPs or SHINs) with a tunable thickness of shell are used to investigate the interactions between NPs and emitters by constructing coupling and noncoupling modes. The plasmonic coupling mode between Ag@SiO₂ NPs and Ag film reveals an exceeding integrating spectral intensity enhancement of 330 and about 124 times that of the radiative emission rate acceleration for shell-isolated nanoparticle enhanced phosphorescence (SHINEP). The experimental findings are supported by theoretical calculations using the finite-element method (FEM). Hence, the SHINEP may provide a novel approach for understanding the interaction of plasmon and phosphorescence, and it holds great potential in surface detection analysis and singlet-oxygen-based clinical therapy.