800 nm laser induced white light upconversion of Nd/Yb/Pr triply doped NaYF4 through a dual-sensitization strategy

[Display omitted] •White light upconversion luminescence in Nd3+/Yb3+/Pr3+ triply doped NaYF4 was achieved upon 800 nm excitation.•The upconversion efficiency can be improved through dual sensitization strategy.•Multichannel temperature sensing was demonstrated using the proposed triply doped sample. To date, the white light lanthanide upconvertion consisting of RGB components usually originated from more than one type of emitter. Alternatively, Pr3+ is a fascinating lanthanide ion featuring multiple visible emission bands, including RGB components that in principle enable Pr3+ to emit white light. In this paper, we report, for the first time to our knowledge, white light upconversion through dual sensitization routes in Nd/Yb/Pr triply doped NaYF4 microrods upon 800 nm excitation. It is found that the dual sensitization is more efficient than single sensitization for Pr3+ upconversion. In addition, the temperature sensing behaviors of the proposed triply doped microrods are comparatively investigated using different emission bands. This work presents a novel white light emitting material upon 800 nm excitation, and further demonstrates the feasibility of multichannel thermometry using the proposed material.