Highly Crystallized Transparent Composite for Cooperative Imaging.

Abstract

Highly crystallized glass composites rarely retain high optical transparency while supporting efficient near-infrared (NIR) emission and strong x-ray response. Here, a highly crystallized Cr³⁺-doped transparent glass composite is reported that breaks this conventional compromise, delivering an optical transmittance exceeding 80% and a near-unity internal quantum efficiency of 98.5%. Under x-ray excitation, the glass composite exhibits a radioluminescence (RL) intensity five times that of Bi₄Ge₃O₁₂ and shows thermally enhanced RL, reaching 105% of its room-temperature intensity at 150°C. This functionality is further extended to fiber form, where NIR glass composite fibers are realized. High-resolution x-ray imaging is achieved with a spatial resolution of 27 lp mm^-1, while integration of optical and x-ray excitation pathways further enables cooperative dual-modal imaging with complementary contrast and enhanced information depth. These results demonstrate a viable strategy for integrating optical transparency, NIR emission and x-ray response within a single material platform, supporting advanced photonic and imaging applications.