Growth and the luminescence properties of a lutetium gadolinium garnet doped with Ce3+ and Pr3+ ions

Crystals of lutetium gadolinium garnet solid solutions (Lu_{1 − x} Gd _x )Al₅O₁₂ (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.6) doped with Ce³⁺ and Pr³⁺ ions have been prepared by the horizontal directional crystallization method, and their optical and luminescence properties have been investigated. It has been established that the introduction of gadolinium into the lutetium garnet lattice leads to a decrease in the antisite luminescence (Lu_Al centers) in the UV spectral range and to sensitization of the Ce³⁺ ion luminescence. By contrast, the presence of gadolinium results in the quenching of the Pr³⁺ luminescence due to the nonradiative excitation transfer from Pr³⁺ ions to Gd³⁺ ions.