Long persistent and photo-stimulated luminescence in Cr3+-doped Zn–Ga–Sn–O phosphors for deep and reproducible tissue imaging

A phosphor with remarkable long persistent luminescence features, Zn3Ga2Sn1O8:0.5 Cr3+, suitable for deep and reproducible tissue imaging has been rationally designed and successfully fabricated. This phosphor shows bright and long persistent luminescence over 300 h in the near-infrared region, and permits an enabling long-term, reproducible, real-time and reliable structural imaging of deep tissues. Moreover, the revived luminescence and persistent luminescence under the excitation of near-infrared incoherent light are also demonstrated to reveal an optional multiplexed detection. This new luminescent indicator will allow repeatable visualization of the structural and functional processes in cells, tissues and other complex systems. In addition, multifarious and systematic investigations are successfully carried out to unravel the nature of traps and also to verify the rationality of the material design.