Patent ID: 7928278

Claim:
A composition of matter, comprising: a polymer, wherein the polymer is a luminescent polymer, wherein the polymer has the characteristic of becoming electronically excited upon exposure of the polymer to photons, and a metal containing compound, wherein the metal containing compound comprises a metal-ligand complex, wherein the metal ligand complex has the characteristic that when excited, energy is transferred from the ligand to the metal by sensitization, wherein the metal has the characteristic that when energy is transferred to the metal by sensitization the energy is emitted as near-infrared radiation, wherein the absorption spectrum of the metal-ligand complex at least partially overlaps with the emission spectrum of the polymer such that when the polymer becomes electronically excited, energy is transferred from the polymer to the metal-ligand complex, wherein at least a portion of the energy transferred from the polymer to the metal-ligand complex is emitted by the metal-ligand complex as near-infrared radiation.