Current powder-polymer composite scintillator films typically require thicknesses of hundreds of micrometers to millimeters to ensure sufficient X-ray attenuation and brightness. However, intrinsic particle aggregation and interfacial heterogeneity inevitably induce severe light scattering, thereby compromising spatial resolution. Herein, we develop two optically homogeneous hybrid metal halide glasses, MTP₂SbCl₅ and MTP₂MnCl₄ (MTP = Methyltriphenylphosphonium), via a scalable low-temperature melt-quenching strategy. These glasses exhibit high visible-near-infrared transmittance up to ~90% and excellent glass-forming ability. At a thickness of 1 mm, they deliver near-complete attenuation of X-ray (>99.8%) and intense radioluminescence with light yields of 5819 and 19232 photons MeV⁻¹, respectively. As a result, the glassy scintillators exhibit robust irradiation durability and achieve spatial resolutions of 18.8 and 22.5 lp mm⁻¹, representing a substantial twofold improvement over previously reported crystalline counterparts. Impressively, they possess stimulus‑responsive reversible glass‑crystal transition, low‑temperature self‑healing, and tunable radioluminescence from green to orange‑red via compositional engineering. These features not only overcome the scattering and monochromatic limitations of traditional scintillators but also establish a novel paradigm for next-generation recyclable materials and multicolor radiation visualization platforms.

As laser lighting advances toward kilowatt-level power, the thermal stability of phosphors has become a critical bottleneck limiting performance enhancement. To address the issue of luminescence degradation of YAG:Ce phosphors caused by a temperature rise under laser irradiation, we introduced highly thermally conductive AlN into the YAG:Ce matrix and successfully prepared AlN–YAG:Ce composite phosphor ceramics by powder-embedding nitrogen atmosphere sintering. The incorporation of AlN enhances lumen efficiency through increased scattering effects while improving thermal robustness via its inherent high thermal conductivity. The ceramic sample containing 50 vol% AlN exhibits a luminescence intensity comparable to that of YAG:Ce, yet its thermal conductivity is approximately three times higher, reaching 27.2 W·m⁻¹·K⁻¹. A high lumen efficiency of 200.1 lm·W⁻¹ and a suitable correlated color temperature of 4608 K are achieved by the ceramics with 10 vol% AlN under 1.3 W·mm⁻² blue laser diode excitation. Moreover, a laser illumination prototype device incorporating ceramic samples containing 10 vol% AlN and a 10 W blue laser was constructed, emitting white light with an illumination range exceeding 500 m, demonstrating potential applications in laser-driven lighting.

Rare-earth-doped glasses have been demonstrated as highly promising scintillator materials, particularly for X-ray imaging applications. However, challenges such as high defect density, low luminescence efficiency, and poor spatial resolution remain, primarily attributed to high phonon energy, inefficient energy transfer (ET), and light scattering in glass materials. Herein, we report a successfully designed dual-sensitized codoped Gd-based oxyfluoride glass scintillator that can achieve high internal quantum efficiency (IQE, 97.5%), excellent X-ray luminescence (XEL) intensity (216% Bi₄Ge₃O₁₂), high optical transparency (approximately 90% at 550 nm), and good radiation stability by using Tb³⁺ as the luminescent center, synergistically incorporating Gd³⁺ and Ce³⁺. Specifically, the optimized glass scintillator can achieve a spatial resolution of up to 32.6 lp·mm⁻¹ for X-ray imaging, coupled with an exceptionally low detection limit of 1.03 μGy·s⁻¹. Additionally, the developed glass scintillator enables irregular-shaped and large-scale fabrication (diameter: 5 cm) that is difficult to accomplish with conventional scintillator materials. The developed material offers a new option for developing low-cost, high-performance glass scintillators for high-resolution X-ray imaging.

Currently, a full-spectrum illumination scheme based on violet-light excitation is proposed to achieve high-quality and healthy lighting. Unfortunately, the most important yellow phosphors are extremely scarce owing to the low absorption efficiency of violet light and low photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY). In this study, glass network engineering of the B₂O₃–BaO–Sc₂O₃ system was developed to fabricate violet-light-excitable yellow-emitting Ba₂Sc₂B₄O₁₁ (BSB):Ce³⁺ glass ceramic (GC) with a record PLQY of 95.0% and superior stability. The optimized [BO₃]/[BO₄] ratio modifies the glass network structure, creating favorable sites for heterogeneous nucleation during in situ glass crystallization. This promoted the formation of well-crystallized BSB nanocrystals (NCs) within the glass matrix, consequently improving the optical performance of the BSB:Ce³⁺ GC composite. This enables the construction of both light-emitting diode (LED)- and laser diode (LD)-driven full-spectrum light sources with high color rendering indices (CRIs) exceeding 93, ensuring superior overall color reproduction quality. This exploration of violet-light-excitable GC composites is intended to accelerate the development of ideal sun-like lighting technology.

Although glass-ceramic (GC) scintillators offer improved performance by combining the advantages of both glass and crystalline materials, achieving an optimal balance between crystallinity and transparency through in situ crystallization in glass is still challenging. To address this problem, this work proposes a comprehensive strategy for regulating the heat treatment temperature, adjusting the amount of raw materials for precipitated nanocrystals, and modifying the glass network structure. Taking NaLuF₄:Tb³⁺-based GC as an example, the results show that optimal conditions, including heat treatment at 700 °C, a total molar percentage of 31.33% for NaF, LuF₃, and TbF₃, and a Si/Al ratio of 5.09, yield GC with 58% crystallinity and 90% transmittance at 542 nm, which are notably superior to those of most other reported high-performance oxyfluoride GC. The corresponding light yield, detection limit, and image resolution are 10,200 photons·MeV⁻¹, 1.26 nGy·s⁻¹, and 25.3 lp·mm⁻¹, respectively, with the resolution exceeding values reported for most fluoride glass- and GC-based scintillators. These findings provide valuable insights into the design of high-performance GC scintillators with high crystallinity and transmittance.

Near-infrared (NIR) phosphor-converted light-emitting diodes/laser diodes (LEDs/LDs) are prospective lighting sources for NIR spectroscopy. However, developing NIR phosphor materials with desired thermal robustness and high photoelectric efficiency is a crucial challenge for their applications. In this work, based on the cationic radius matching effect, a series of (Lu,Y)₃(Al,Sc,Cr)₂Al₃O₁₂ NIR phosphor ceramics (LuYScCr NIR-PCs) were fabricated by vacuum sintering. Excellent thermal stability (95%@150 ℃) was obtained in the prepared NIR-PCs, owing to their weak electron–phonon coupling effect (small Huang–Rhys factor). Being excited at 460 nm, NIR-PCs realized a broadband emission (650–850 nm) with internal quantum efficiency (IQE) of 60.68%. Combining NIR-PCs with LED/LD chips, the maximum output power of the encapsulated LED prototype was 447 mW@300 mA with photoelectric efficiency of as high as 18.6 %@180 mA, and the maximum output power of the LD prototype was 814 mW@2.5 A. The working temperatures of NIR-PCs were 70.8 ℃@300 mA (LED) and 102.8 ℃@3 A (LD). Finally, the prepared NIR-PCs applied in food detection were verified in this study, demonstrating their anticipated application prospects in the future.

Recently, high-performance color converters excitable by blue laser diode (LD) have sprung up for projection displays. However, the thermal accumulation effect of the color converters is a non-negligible problem under high-power LD irradiation. Herein, we developed novel opto-functional composites (patterned CaAlSiN₃:Eu²⁺ phosphor-in-glass film–Y₃Al₅O₁₂:Ce³⁺ phosphor-in-glass film@Al₂O₃ plate with aluminum "heat sink" ) via a thermal management methodology of combining "phosphor wheel" and "heat sink" for a lighting source of highpower laser projection displays. This new composite design makes it effective to transport generated thermal phonons away to reduce the thermal ionization process, and to yield stable and high-quality white light with brightness of 4510 lm@43 W, luminous efficacy of 105 lm/W, correlated color temperature of 3541 K, and color rendering index of 80.0. Furthermore, the phosphor-in-glass film-converted laser projection system was also successfully designed, showing a more vivid color effect compared to a traditional LED-based projector. This work emphasizes the importance of the thermal management upon high-power laser irradiation, and hopefully facilitates the development of a new LD-driven lighting source for high-power laser projection displays.

Particle velocimetry based on the temporal feature of upconversion luminescent nanocrystals is a newly-raising fluid velocimetry. Exploiting the availability to low flow rate fluid and exempting redundance external calibration (achieving once calibration for all) are highly expected and challenging. Herein, an engineered core–shell nano-probe, NaYF₄:Yb/Ho/Ce@NaGdF₄, was proposed, in which the Ce³⁺ ions were utilized to manipulate the upconversion dynamic of Ho³⁺. Through optimization, a superior sensitive against low-speed flow is achieved, and the external calibrations before each operation can be avoided. Application demonstrations were conducted on a fluid circulation system with controllable flow rate. The fluid velocity was monitored successfully, no matter it is permanent, or cyclically variating (imitating the in vivo arterial blood). Moreover, this velocimetric route is competent in spatial scanning for handling the spatially inhomogeneous velocity field. Such sensing nanomaterial and fluid velocimetric method exhibit promising application potential in human blood velocimetry, industrial control, or environmental monitoring.

Dual-phases glass ceramics (GCs) containing LiYF₄: Ln³⁺(Ln=Eu, Tb, Dy) and ZnAl₂O₄: Cr³⁺ nanocrystals (NCs) were fabricated by a conventional melt-quenching method. The structural and spectrographic characterizations indicate that Ln³⁺ can be doped into LiYF₄ lattice and Cr³⁺ can be introduced into ZnAl₂O₄ lattice, respectively. In this regard, the luminescent centers are physically separated through a spatial isolation strategy, getting rid of adverse energy transfer processes. The dual-modal luminescence of Ln³⁺ and Cr³⁺ can be thus attained simultaneously. Also, optical thermometry based on the fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR) of Ln³⁺/Cr³⁺ is performed. Under irradiation upon 377 nm, the FIR value for Tb³⁺: ⁵D₄→⁷F₅ and Cr³⁺: ²E→⁴A₂ transitions varies acutely, with a maximal relative sensitivity of 0.80%·K^–1 at 570 K. The FIR-based optical thermometry for Dy³⁺: ⁴F_9/2→⁶H_13/2 and Cr³⁺: ²E→⁴A₂ transitions is carried out, with a maximal relative sensitivity of 0.86%·K^–1 at 573 K. As a consequence, the dual-phases GCs can be an ideal medium for the spatial isolation of luminescent centers, suppressing an adverse energy transfer process and realizing an efficient dual-mode luminescence. This is beneficial to the application of FIR-based optical thermometry for GC materials.