A universal strategy toward two-component organic-inorganic metal halide luminescent glasses and glass-crystal composites

The development of melt-quenched organic-inorganic metal halide (OIMH) glasses is hampered by the scarcity of suitable organic molten salts and low luminescence efficiency. Herein, we developed a series of two-component OIMH amorphous glasses consisting of (TPG)₂MnBr₄ (TPG⁺, triphenylguanidium) and A₂MnBr₄ (A, organic molten cation), named α_G(A_xTPG_y). The high glass-formation ability (GFA) in (TPG)₂MnBr₄ provides a platform to modulate the crystallization of another molten A₂MnBr₄ by homogeneous melting. Moreover, the GFA modulation allows controlled in situ crystallization of α_G(A_xTPG_y) and the formation of transparent glass-crystal composites with higher luminescence efficiency. For instance, the light yield of α_G(PTP₉₉TPG₁) (PTP⁺, propyltriphenylphosphonium) is improved from 18,800 to 35,140 photons per mega-electron volt after annealing at 55°C, showing huge application potentials in radiation detection and high-resolution x-ray imaging. The present research would inspire further exploration of high-performance OIMH glasses and facilitate multiple applications in advanced photonics such as scintillators, photoconductive fibers, light-emitting diodes, and laser crystals.