Lanthanide-doped Na 2 MgScF 7 exhibiting downshifting and upconversion emissions for multicolor anti-counterfeiting.

NaMgScF (NMSF) was experimentally obtained for the first time by combining hydrothermal and high-temperature solid-state reactions. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) combined with Rietveld refinement confirms that NMSF is crystallized in the space group with the cell parameters = 10.40860(18), = 7.32804(12) and = 7.52879(11) Å, = = = 90° and = 574.256(24) Å. Through doping with Tb or Eu ions, downshifting yellow-green or red emission could be achieved in NMSF-based phosphors, respectively. Upconversion emission could also be designed by doping with Yb-Er, Yb-Tm, Yb-Ho or Er. Moreover, the NMSF:Er phosphor exhibited green upconversion emission upon excitation at 980 nm, and it exhibited red emission upon excitation at 1532 nm. Finally, recognizable patterns were obtained under excitation at 254, 365 and 980 nm, indicating that the as-prepared phosphors can be applied to multicolor anti-counterfeiting. Moreover, our synthesis strategy opens up new avenues for the synthesis of novel fluorides.