Dear Colleagues,

In the last decades, rare-earth doped materials acquired a key role in the development of systems for light generation, guiding, manipulation and detection. This is mainly due to the intrinsic, unique optical properties exhibited by rare earth ions when embedded in suitable host matrices.

In addition to the typical applications in telecommunication and photonics, rare-earth-based materials have also been developed for more tailored uses, such as phosphors for decorative lighting, remote temperature sensors for bioimaging, spectral modifiers for photovoltaic solar cells, and anti-counterfeiting markers in manufacturing and in cultural heritage preservation.

The possibility of achieving these features also goes through the design of novel material architectures that can activate or enhance specific rare-earth optical properties. In this regard, intense research activity has been undertaken to develop rare-earth-based composite and nanostructured systems, spanning from inorganic/organic hybrid materials to core–shell structures, from nanoparticle-embedded films to loaded porous matrices.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to provide an overview of the state-of-the-art and future perspectives for rare-earth based optical materials with peculiar structural architectures, which are of great interest for the photonic and optoelectronic fields as well as for intriguing tailored applications.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to: novel composite systems and preparation methods, emerging applications for rare-earth-based materials, advanced rare earth optical properties, novel tools and models for optical material characterization.

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• Rare-earth doped materials
• Luminescence and optical properties
• Composite materials
• Advanced optical functionalities
• Nano-thermometry
• Spectral modification
• Micro- and nano-sized phosphors