Highly luminescent Gd2O2S:Er3+,Yb3+ upconversion microcrystals obtained by a time- and energy-saving microwave-assisted solid-state synthesis

Er3+-doped and Er3+,Yb3+-co-doped Gd2O2S are one of the most efficient upconversion (UC) materials available to date. However, preparing lanthanide oxysulfides can be challenging as it requires several hours of heating at > 1000 degrees C in high power furnaces. Nonetheless, in designing a new synthesis technology for UC materials, one should consider that these systems suffer from defect quenching, responsible for significant optical energy losses. In this work, the microwave-assisted solid-state (MASS) synthesis was explored as an alternative to synthesize this class of materials, using two different starting compounds - lanthanide oxides (Ln2O3) and hydroxycarbonates (Ln(OH)CO3), where Ln3+: Gd, Er, Yb. Different Er3+,Yb3+ concentrations were investigated, and the Er3+(5%),Yb3+(5%) and Er3+ (1%),Yb3+ (10%) were shown to give the most intense UC output comparable to commercially available materials. Using Ln(OH)CO3 instead of the more common Ln2O3 for the MASS synthesis contributed to higher UC efficiencies and a more homogeneous Er3+ and especially Yb3+ distribution through the Gd2O2S lattice as verified by luminescence lifetime measurements. These high-quality materials were prepared in a simple two-step synthesis of 50 min and using a domestic microwave oven, leading to a remarkable decrease of 79% in processing time and 93% in energy consumption, making the MASS method suitable to be explored as an alternative synthesis methodology for high performance UC materials.(c) 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).</p

Detection of X-Ray Doses with Color-Changing Hackmanites: Mechanism and Application

Hackmanites, a variety of sodalite with the general formula Na8Al6Si6O24(Cl,S)(2), are a family of nature-based smart materials having the ability for reversible photochromism upon UV or X-ray exposure. Being nontoxic, cheap, and durable, hackmanite would be an optimal material for the visual detection of the presence of X-rays in simple portable systems. However, its X-ray-induced coloring abilities are so far known only qualitatively. In this work, a combination of experimental and computational methods is used to reveal the mechanism of X-ray-induced color changing in these materials. Finally, their use is demonstrated both in color intensity-based X-ray dosimetry and photochromic X-ray imaging

Search for neutral MSSM Higgs bosons decaying to a pair of tau leptons in pp collisions

Peer reviewe

Measurement of prompt J/ψ pair production in pp collisions at √s = 7 Tev

Peer reviewe

Searches for electroweak production of charginos, neutralinos, and sleptons decaying to leptons and W, Z, and Higgs bosons in pp collisions at 8 TeV

Peer reviewe

Constraints on parton distribution functions and extraction of the strong coupling constant from the inclusive jet cross section in pp collisions at √s=7 TeV

Peer reviewe

Study of hadronic event-shape variables in multijet final states in pp collisions at √s=7 TeV

Peer reviewe

Measurement of top quark–antiquark pair production in association with a W or Z boson in pp collisions at √s=8 TeV

Peer reviewe

Multi-messenger observations of a binary neutron star merger

On 2017 August 17 a binary neutron star coalescence candidate (later designated GW170817) with merger time 12:41:04 UTC was observed through gravitational waves by the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo detectors. The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor independently detected a gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) with a time delay of ~1.7 s with respect to the merger time. From the gravitational-wave signal, the source was initially localized to a sky region of 31 deg2 at a luminosity distance of 40+8-8 Mpc and with component masses consistent with neutron stars. The component masses were later measured to be in the range 0.86 to 2.26 Mo. An extensive observing campaign was launched across the electromagnetic spectrum leading to the discovery of a bright optical transient (SSS17a, now with the IAU identification of AT 2017gfo) in NGC 4993 (at ~40 Mpc) less than 11 hours after the merger by the One- Meter, Two Hemisphere (1M2H) team using the 1 m Swope Telescope. The optical transient was independently detected by multiple teams within an hour. Subsequent observations targeted the object and its environment. Early ultraviolet observations revealed a blue transient that faded within 48 hours. Optical and infrared observations showed a redward evolution over ~10 days. Following early non-detections, X-ray and radio emission were discovered at the transient’s position ~9 and ~16 days, respectively, after the merger. Both the X-ray and radio emission likely arise from a physical process that is distinct from the one that generates the UV/optical/near-infrared emission. No ultra-high-energy gamma-rays and no neutrino candidates consistent with the source were found in follow-up searches. These observations support the hypothesis that GW170817 was produced by the merger of two neutron stars in NGC4993 followed by a short gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) and a kilonova/macronova powered by the radioactive decay of r-process nuclei synthesized in the ejecta

Relative Modification of Prompt psi(2S) and J/psi Yields from pp to PbPb Collisions at root(S)(NN)=5.02 TeV

Peer reviewe