Up-converted photoluminescence (UPL) in InAs/GaAs heterostructures has been investigated. Relaxation process imposes a great challenge for efficient UPL. It is found that efficient UPL can be detected by the luminescence from InAs/GaAs multi quantum well (MQW), and that the intensity could be enhanced by further improving crystalline quality of GaAs barrier. In addition, choosing proper energy states as intermediate states is another important issue to enhance UPL. We describe how the overall UPL efficiency can be controlled by the epitaxial growth and selection of intermediate states. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.