Luminescence lifetime nanothermometry for accurate temperature measurements in Vivo

Precise temperature measurement at nanoscale using luminescence, also known as luminescence nanothermometry, is of great significance for many applications ranging from catalytic reactions, to integrated photonic devices, and importantly, to precise medicine. However, accurate determination of temperature in the body is nontrivial, as optical transmission of tissues is temperature-dependent and varies from type to type, thus distorting the emitted luminescence spectral shape before reaching to the detector. Luminescence lifetime nanothermometry provides a unique solution to this problem, which is independent of probe concentration, excitation light power density, and tissue optical properties. Indeed, different types of nanomaterials such as near infrared-emitting carbon dots, ultra-long-lived luminescent nanocapsule with triplet-triplet annihilation upconversion luminescence, and lanthanide nanoparticles with tissue-penetrating luminescence in the second biological window (NIR-II window, 1000-1700 nm) have been developed toward this regard, showing promising.