Fabrication and characterization of temperature-sensitive smart luminescent nanoparticles of poly (N-isopropylacrylamide)/lanthanide-polyoxometalates with core-shell structure

In this paper, the temperature-sensitive luminescent particles with core-shell structure were synthesized by grafting poly (N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) to the exterior surface of lanthanide-polyoxometalates (Ln-POM). The Ln-POM/PNIPAM nanoparticles were characterized by FT-IR, UV–vis spectra, thermogravimetric analysis, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscope, dynamic light scattering and luminescence spectra. The results showed that the smart nanoparticles were spherical and had fine core-shell structure. The luminescent spectra showed that the luminescence properties of smart Ln-POM/PNIPAM nanoparticles were changeable in response to temperature stimuli. The luminescent nanoparticles have potential applications in luminescent probes and labels for biomedicine.