A Multifunctional Biomaterial with NIR Long Persistent Phosphorescence, Photothermal Response and Magnetism

There are many reports on long persistent phosphors (LPPs) applied in bio-imaging. However, there are few reports on LPPs applied in photo-thermal therapy (PTT), and an integrated system with the multi-functions of diagnosis and therapy. In this work, we fabricate effective multi-functional phosphors Zn3Ga2SnO8: Cr3+, Nd3+, Gd3+ with NIR persistent phosphorescence, photo-thermal response and magnetism. Such featured materials can act as NIR optical bio-labels and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) contrast agent for tracking the early cancer cells, but also as photo-thermal therapeutic agent for killing the cancerization cell. The new multi-functional biomaterial is expected to open a new possibility of setting up an advanced imaging-guided therapy system featuring a high resolution for bio-imaging and low side effect for the photo-thermal ablation of tumors.