Inglefield, David Lott, Jr.Merritt, Travis R.Magill, Brenden A.Long, Timothy E.Khodaparast, Giti A.2016-03-182016-03-182015-05-08Inglefield, D. L., Merritt, T. R., Magill, B. A., Long, T. E., & Khodaparast, G. A. (2015). Upconverting nanocomposites dispersed in urea-containing acrylics. Journal of Materials Chemistry C, 3(21), 5556-5565. doi:10.1039/C5TC00992H2050-75262015_Inglefield_Upconverting_nanocomposites.pdfDMR-0846834http://hdl.handle.net/10919/64954Lanthanide-doped upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) have the ability to convert low energy photons into high energy photons, making this material appealing for a variety of scientific pursuits, from solar energy conversion to bioimaging. A combination of polymers and nanocomposites increases the utility of these upconverting nanoparticles allowing nanoparticles to be added to any device compatible with polymer coatings. Here, trifluoroacetate salt decomposition enables Er/Yb doped NaYF4 upconverting nanoparticle synthesis. The subsequent deposition of a silica nanoshell yields polar silica-coated upconverting nanoparticles, enabling composite formation with polar urea-containing methacrylic polymers. Hydrogen bonding between urea groups in the polymer and the silica-coated nanoparticles allowed for dispersion of the upconverting nanoparticles to form upconverting composite films. These films exhibit desirable upconversion comparable to the nanoparticles dispersed in methanol. Urea-containing polymers are promising candidates for matrices in nanocomposites formed with polar silica nanoparticles due to favorable polymer-nanoparticle interactions. This architecture is superior to urea-methacrylate homopolymers, since the central low glass transition temperature block will provide critical ductility to the film, thus rendering the film to be durable for optical applications.10 p.application/pdfen-USCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 UnportedArticle - Refereedhttps://doi.org/10.1039/C5TC00992H321