The invention relates to a method of preparing lanthanide-doped ML materials, particularly lanthanide-doped CaZnOS crystals and their uses. Lanthanide-doped CaZnOS crystals exhibit characteristic lanthanide emission properties when excited. These materials are in stark contrast to conventional lanthanide-doped upconversion, downconversion or downshifting materials which normally emit light under light source excitation, this type of ML materials can be exited by mechanical force.
Present invention seeks to fill the gap that lanthanide ions are not effectively doped into the ML host materials. By following the procedure, varieties of lanthanide ions can be effectively incorporated into CaZnOS crystals with highly tunable ML spanning the whole spectrum from violet to near infrared.
The ML materials prepared based on the mentioned method can be used for wide range of applications. The color of the ML materials can be adjusted from green to red emission by combining different materials. The availability of multiple color of lanthanide-doped CaZnOS crystals enables them to be useful in optical encoded graphic for anti-counterfeiting applications. And the lanthanide-doped CaZnOS crystals have potential for wind-driven display, stress sensor and artificial skins as well.