Potential of afterglow zirconia as a sensitive biological temperature probe

Noninvasive and site-selective temperature sensing is required in biology and advanced medicine. Recently, we proposed a new concept for temperature sensing, which is based on afterglow and optically-stimulated luminescence [Sci. Rep. 10, 2242 (2020)]. Here we assessed the thermal sensitivity of afterglow zirconia and clarified the potential of this material as probe phosphor by thermoluminescence measurements. The evaluated sensitivity value of the zirconia was 10 %/K, which was higher than typical materials used in luminescent thermometers. Therefore, the prepared zirconia is a great candidate as a harmless and biocompatible sensing probe.