Annihilation upconversion in cells by embedding the dye system in polymeric nanocapsules

The first energetically conjoined TTA-assisted photon energy upconversion operating in cell tissue is described. The synthesized nanocapsules with the encapsulated UC dye system consisting of an emitter and a sensitizer show very efficient UC emission in aqueous dispersion under extremely low excitation intensity down to 0.05 W · cm(-2) so that tissue and cells are not affected by the excitation light. The demonstrated sub-linear intensity dependence of the UC emission is of crucial importance for life-science applications as the UC photon could serve as a local or in situ optical excitation source for subsequent light-triggered processes.