Neodymium(III)-doped Y3Al2Ga3O12 garnet for multipurpose ratiometric thermometry: From cryogenic to high temperature sensing

Nd3+-doped Y3Al2Ga3O12 garnet ceramic pellet was prepared by solid state reaction and used as prototype to investigate the potential of Nd3+-activated garnet phosphors as Boltzmann thermometers for cryogenic and high temperature ranges. Despite the conventional use of the near-infrared emitting Nd3+-activated phosphors for biological applications, their real use is hindered by a low sensitivity in the physiological temperature range. Instead, the photoluminescence analysis in the 100-800 K range demonstrated interesting performances in both the cryogenic and high temperature ranges. Indeed, by taking advantage of the Stark levels of 4F3/2 (Z-levels) and the ratio between the emission from the 4F5/2 and the 4F3/2 excited states is possible to build two reliable Boltzmann thermometers in the same material working in the cryogenic temperature range (100-220 K) and at high temperatures (300-800 K), respectively.