Preparation and Luminescence Properties of A-Type Lutecium Silicate Core-Shell Nanospheres

X-ray radio-luminescence materials have potential application in radiotherapy (RT) and biomedical imaging. Considering that lutecium ions (Lu³⁺) with high atomic number (Z) have high X-ray attenuation coefficients, Ce³⁺-doped A-type Lu₂SiO₅@SiO₂ (A-LSO:Ce³⁺@SiO₂) core-shell nanospheres with size in the range of 200-250 nm were prepared through coprecipitation method. The growth mechanism of A-LSO:Ce³⁺@SiO₂ core-shell nanospheres was investigated through determining the phase transition and morphology evolution by XRD, FT-IR, and TEM. The emission spectra, decay profile, and X-ray excited luminescence spectra (XEL) of the obtained samples were collected. The results show that a new type of lutecium silicate core-shell nanospheres A-LSO:Ce³⁺@SiO₂ can be fabricated and exhibit efficient radio-luminescence under X-ray radiation, which has potential application in the diagnosis and therapy of cancer.