We are trying a new method to get TiO2 to fluoresce.  We are using Alizarin Red S to connect with TiO2 by suspending them together 24 hours.  If the connections are “just right,” it will lower the “band gap” which means the gap in energy it takes for the electrons to jump from one level to another.  The lower the band gap, the easier it will be for a low frequency light source like visible light to be able to cause fluorescence (electrons to jump a level and then fall back down).  For preliminary data we are using a basic 1:1 molar ratio and 1:2 molar ratio of TiO2 to Alizarin Red S to just see if there is any difference in the amount of fluorescence (if any).  The last time we tried to coat the TiO2 particles with DMSA (Dimercaptosuccinic Acid) to see if this chelator would help it fluoresce, the reflection at 90 degrees was almost the same wavelength as the original source (but usually fluorescence is a significantly lower wavelength), indicating it might be just diffraction and not really fluorescence.  I believe we are checking the fluorescence results later today.