Fluorescein/polyvinyl pyrrolidone （PVP） composite nanofibers with different fluorescein loadings （with a weight concentration of 0-5.0%） are fabricated via electrospinning. Morphologies, structures and photoluminescent （PL） prop- erties of these straight, helical or wavelike fibers are characterized by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, fluorescence microscopy and a spectrophotometer. It is found that the maximum emission of the as-spun fluorescein/PVP fibers occurs at 510 nm. The PL intensity of the composite fiber increases with fluorescein concentration, then fluorescence quenching appears when the concentration reaches 1.67%. The mechanism of fluorescence quenching of fiuorescein is discussed. In addition, the composite fibers exhibit a much stronger PL intensity than fluorescein/PVP bulk film owing to larger specific surface area, which makes them promising materials for biomedical applications such as probes and sensors.
