Crystal growth of Ce2O(CO3)2·H2O in aqueous solutions: Film formation and samarium doping

Crystalline cerium oxide carbonate hydrate (Ce₂O(CO₃)₂·H₂O) was grown in aqueous solutions at a low temperature of 80 °C under ambient pressure. When cerium nitrate was used as a starting material, large Ce₂O(CO₃)₂·H₂O particles were precipitated through homogeneous nucleation and subsequent fast crystal growth. In contrast, the usage of cerium chloride was found to promote the preferential precipitation of Ce₂O(CO₃)₂·H₂O on foreign substrates through heterogeneous nucleation and slow crystal growth. This phenomenon was applied to a chemical bath deposition of Ce₂O(CO₃)₂·H₂O films. Immersion of glass substrates in the solution at 80 °C for typically 24 h resulted in formation of solid films with a unique morphology like a micrometer-scale brush. It was also found that samarium could be incorporated into Ce₂O(CO₃)₂·H₂O during the crystal growth in the solutions, as evidenced by characteristic photoluminescence of Sm³⁺ in heating products of CeO₂. These results suggest that rare-earth oxide carbonate hydrates with a variety of compositions and morphologies can be synthesized from the aqueous solutions.     

CaF2对CaO-CaF2-B2O3-SiO2：Sm2O3玻璃的光致发光增强效应

用高温熔融法制备了掺杂Sm₂O₃的CaO-CaF₂-B₂O₃-SiO₂(CFBS:Sm)发光玻璃材料, 并借助X射线衍射(XRD)谱、傅里叶变换红外(FTIR)光谱以及光致发光(PL)光谱等分析手段研究了玻璃基体中CaF₂的摩尔分数及其结构、红外透过性能以及荧光性能的关系. XRD和FTIR测试表明, 玻璃基体中引入CaF₂并未引起非晶结构的变化但其红外透过峰发生移动. 光谱学测试表明, CFBS:Sm发光玻璃在404 nm波长激发下出现对应于Sm³⁺离子位于566、603和650 nm的特征荧光峰, 其发光颜色为橙红色(x=0.531, y=0.371). 此外, 随着玻璃基体中CaF₂摩尔分数的增加, CFBS:Sm发光玻璃的荧光发射强度、荧光寿命(Sm³⁺的⁴G_5/2能级)和荧光量子效率也表现出增大的趋势. 这种CFBS:Sm发光玻璃中荧光发射强度和荧光寿命的提高主要是由于玻璃基体中的CaF₂替代CaO引起基体相互作用和声子能量降低、无辐射跃迁减弱造成的.     

Photoluminescence of samarium-doped TiO2 nanotubes

Samarium (Sm)-modified TiO₂ nanotubes (TNTs) were synthesized by low-temperature soft chemical processing. X-ray powder diffraction analyses of the synthesized Sm-doped and non-doped TNTs show a broad peak near 2θ=10°, which is typical of TNTs. The binding energy of Sm ³d_5/2 for 10 mol% Sm-doped TNT (1088.3 eV) was chemically shifted from that of Sm₂O₃ (1087.5 eV), showing that Sm existed in the TiO₂ lattice. Sm-doped TNTs clearly exhibited red fluorescence, corresponding to the doped Sm³⁺ ion in the TNT lattice. The Sm-doped TNT excitation spectrum exhibited a broad curve, which was similar to the UV–vis optical absorption spectrum. Thus, it was considered that the photoluminescence emission of Sm³⁺-doped TNT with UV-light irradiation was caused by the energy transfer from the TNT matrix via the band-to-band excitation of TiO₂ to the Sm³⁺ ion.     

Valence and environment of rare earth ions in CaAl2O4:Eu,R persistent luminescence materials

The existence of the different R²⁺/R³⁺/R^IV (R: rare earth) ions as well as the modifications in the structural environment around the dopant and co-dopants in CaAl₂O₄:Eu²⁺,R³⁺ persistent luminescence materials was studied by L_III edge X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (XANES) and Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (EXAFS) measurements at Hamburger Synchrotronstrahlungslabor (HASYLAB) at Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY) (Hamburg, Germany). The measurements were carried out at 10 and 296 K for selected rare earth (co-)dopants (Eu²⁺; Ce³⁺, Nd³⁺, Sm³⁺, and Yb³⁺).     

Chemical processing for inorganic fluoride and oxyfluoride materials having optical functions

Chemical processing such as a sol–gel method can offer interesting and useful routes for designing and synthesizing inorganic metal fluoride and oxyfluoride materials for applications in optics and photonics. In our series of studies during the last decade, a variety of fluoride materials including alkaline earth fluorides (MgF₂, CaF₂, SrF₂ and BaF₂), rare-earth fluorides (LaF₃, NdF₃, GdF₃, etc.), rare-earth oxyfluorides (LaOF, EuOF, GdOF, Sm₄O₃F₆, Er₄O₃F₆, etc.) and complex fluorides (SrAlF₅, BaMgF₄, BaLiF₃, LiGdF₄, etc.) have been prepared, using trifluoroacetic acid as a fluorine source, in the form of nanoparticles, thin films and oxide/fluoride nanocomposites. They can be utilized as anti-reflective coatings, luminescent materials, VUV materials, IR materials, and so forth. This article summarizes fundamentals and possible applications of optically useful inorganic fluoride and oxyfluoride materials, with emphasis on porous single-layer anti-reflective coatings and visible photoluminescence of doped Eu³⁺ or Eu²⁺ ions. Furthermore, our recent results on LaF₃:Ce³⁺ and LaOF:Ce³⁺ are originally reported here.     

Luminescence properties of Eu- and Ce-doped CaAl2S4 and application in white LEDs

The Eu²⁺- and Ce³⁺-doped CaAl₂S₄ phosphors were comparatively synthesized by conventional solid-state reaction and the evacuated sealed quartz ampoule. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns show that the sample with better crystalline quality was prepared by the evacuated sealed quartz ampoule, resulting in the enhancement of the emission intensity of Eu²⁺ ion by a factor of 1.7. The intensive green LEDs were also fabricated by combining CaAl₂S₄:Eu²⁺ with near-ultraviolet InGaN chips (λ_em=395 nm). The dependence of as-fabricated green LEDs on forward-bias currents shows that it presents good chromaticity stability and luminance saturation, indicating that CaAl₂S₄:Eu²⁺ is a promising green-emitting phosphor for a near-UV InGaN-based LED. In addition, the optical properties of CaAl₂S₄:Ce³⁺ were systematically investigated by means of diffuse reflectance, photoluminescence excitation and emission, concentrating quenching and the decay curve.     

Luminescence in NaLn(SO4)2H2O: A host lattice with high-energy vibrations

The luminescence of Ce³⁺, Sm³⁺, Eu³⁺, Gd³⁺, Tb³⁺, and Dy³⁺ in NaLn(SO₄)₂H₂O (Ln = lanthanide) is reported. Only Ce³⁺, Gd³⁺, and Tb³⁺ show efficient emission. This is explained in terms of an energy-gap law. Energy transfer is studied in several codoped compositions. The mutual transfer between Gd³⁺ ions is the only one encountered with high probability. The several transfers are discussed and where possible their rates are calculated.     

Thermoluminescence and synchrotron radiation studies on the persistent luminescence of BaAl2O4:Eu,Dy

The persistent luminescence materials, barium aluminates doped with Eu²⁺ and Dy³⁺ (BaAl₂O₄:Eu²⁺,Dy³⁺), were prepared with the combustion synthesis at temperatures between 400 and 600 °C as well as with the solid state reaction at 1500 °C. The concentrations of Eu²⁺/Dy³⁺ (in mol% of the Ba amount) ranged from 0.1/0.1 to 1.0/3.0. The electronic and defect energy level structures were studied with thermoluminescence (TL) and synchrotron radiation (SR) spectroscopies: UV-VUV excitation and emission, as well as with X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) methods. Theoretical calculations using the density functional theory (DFT) were carried out in order to compare with the experimental data.     

Preparation, crystal structure, and photoluminescence of Ca2SnO4:Eu, Y

Eu³⁺-doped Ca₂SnO₄ (solid solutions of Ca_2−xEu_2xSn_1−xO₄, 0?x?0.3) and Eu³⁺ and Y³⁺-codoped Ca₂SnO₄ (Ca_1.8Y_0.2Eu_0.2Sn_0.8O₄) were prepared by solid-state reaction at 1400 °C in air. Rietveld analysis of the X-ray powder diffraction patterns revealed that Eu³⁺ replaced Ca²⁺ and Sn⁴⁺ in Eu³⁺-doped Ca₂SnO₄, and that Eu³⁺ replaced Ca²⁺ and Y³⁺ replaced Sn⁴⁺ in Ca_1.8Y_0.2Eu_0.2Sn_0.8O₄. Red luminescence at 616 nm due to the electric dipole transition ⁵D_o→⁷F₂ was observed in the photoluminescence (PL) spectra of Ca_2−xEu_2xSn_1−xO₄ and Ca_1.8Y_0.2Eu_0.2Sn_0.8O₄ at room temperature. The maximum PL intensity in the solid solutions of Ca_2−xEu_2xSn_1−xO₄ was obtained for x=0.1. The PL intensity of Ca_1.8Y_0.2Eu_0.2Sn_0.8O₄ was 1.26 times greater than that of Ca_2−xEu_2xSn_1−xO₄ with x=0.1.     

CaWO4:xEu3+,ySm3+,zLi+红色荧光粉的制备及光学性能

采用微波固相法制备了CaWO₄：xEu³⁺,ySm³⁺,zLi⁺红色荧光粉。测量样品的XRD图、激发谱、发射谱及发光衰减曲线,研究并分析了Eu³⁺、Sm³⁺、Li⁺的掺杂浓度,对样品微结构、光致发光特性、能量传递及能级寿命的影响。结果表明,Eu³⁺、Sm³⁺、Li⁺掺杂并未引起合成粉体改变晶相,仍为CaWO₄单一四方晶系结构。Eu³⁺、Sm³⁺共掺样品中,Sm³⁺掺杂为3%时,Sm³⁺对Eu³⁺的能量传递最有效。Li⁺掺杂起到了助熔剂和敏化剂的作用,使样品发光更强。在394 nm激发下,与CaWO₄：3%Eu³⁺样品比较,3%Eu³⁺、3%Sm³⁺共掺CaWO₄及3%Eu³⁺、3%Sm³⁺、1%Li⁺共掺CaWO₄样品的发光分别增强2倍及2.4倍。同一激发波长下,单掺Eu³⁺样品寿命最短,Sm³⁺、Eu³⁺共掺样品随Sm³⁺浓度增加,寿命先减小后增加,且掺杂了Li⁺的样品比不掺Li⁺的样品⁵D₀能级寿命有所增加。     

Solvothermal synthesis and luminescent properties of monodisperse LaPO4:Ln (Ln=Eu, Ce, Tb) particles

Monodisperse rare-earth ion (Eu³⁺, Ce³⁺, Tb³⁺) doped LaPO₄ particles with oval morphology were successfully prepared through a facile solvothermal process without further heat treatment. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), photoluminescence (PL) spectra and the kinetic decays were performed to characterize these samples. The XRD results reveal that all the doped samples are well crystalline at 180 °C and assigned to the monoclinic monazite-type structure of the LaPO₄ phase. It has been shown that all the as-synthesized samples show perfectly oval morphology with narrow size distribution. The possible growth mechanism of the LaPO₄:Ln has been investigated as well. Upon excitation by ultraviolet radiation, the LaPO₄:Eu³⁺ phosphors show the characteristic ⁵D₀−⁷F_1-4 emission lines of Eu³⁺, while the LaPO₄:Ce³⁺, Tb³⁺ phosphors demonstrate the characteristic ⁵D₄−⁷F_3-6 emission lines of Tb³⁺.     

Rietveld refinement and photoluminescent properties of a new blue-emitting material: Eu activated SrZnP2O7

A new efficient blue phosphor, Eu²⁺ activated SrZnP₂O₇, has been synthesized at 1000 °C under reduced atmosphere and the crystal structure and photoluminescence properties have been investigated. The crystal structure of SrZnP₂O₇ was obtained via Rietveld refinement of powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern. It was found that SrZnP₂O₇ crystallizes in space group of P2₁/n (no. 14), Z=4, and the unit cell dimensions are: a=5.30906(2) Å, b=8.21392(3) Å, c=12.73595(5) Å, β=90.1573(3)°, and V=555.390(3) Å³. Under ultraviolet excitation (200-400 nm), efficient Eu²⁺ emission peaked at 420 nm was observed, of which the luminescent efficiency at the optimal concentration of Eu²⁺ (4 mol%) was estimated to be 96% as that of BaMgAl₁₀O₁₇:Eu²⁺. Hence, the SrZnP₂O₇:Eu²⁺ exhibit great potential as a phosphor in different applications, such as ultraviolet light emitting diode and photo-therapy lamps.     

Luminescence Quenching between Ce and Eu in LAB3O6

The Ce³⁺ and Eu³⁺ ions in LaB₃O₆ quench each other's luminescence. However, Ce³⁺ quenches Eu³⁺ more effectively than Eu³⁺ quenches Ce³⁺. The critical distances for this quenching are about 15 and 6 Å respectively.     

TSL and EPR studies of SrBPO5 doped with CeO2and co-doped with CeO2 and Sm2O3

Thermally stimulated luminescence (TSL) and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) investigations were carried out on gamma irradiated SrBPO₅ samples doped with CeO₂ and co-doped with CeO₂ and Sm₂O₃. On gamma-irradiation at room temperature, BO₃ ^2–, O₂ ^– and O^– radicals were produced. It was seen that the O^– radical ion disappeared in the sample annealed at 500 K. It is proposed that the recombination between trapped electrons and O^– radical ions results in transfer of recombination energy to the impurity centre Ce³⁺ resulting in TSL glow peak at 485 K. In the case of co-doped samples energy transfer occurs between Ce³⁺ to Sm³⁺ resulting in increase in the intensity of glow peak at 485 K.The authors are grateful to Dr. V. K. Manchanda, Head, Radiochemistry Division, BARC for his keen interest and encouragement during the course of this work.     

Electronic properties and rare-earth ions photoluminescence behaviors in borosilicate: SrB2Si2O8

Undoped and RE ions doped SrB₂Si₂O₈ were successfully synthesized. After the application of UV and VUV spectroscopy measurements, we made a novel discovery that the emission of SrB₂Si₂O₈:Eu prepared in air can be switched between red and blue by the different excitations. The information is that quite a part of Eu³⁺ was spontaneously reduced to Eu²⁺ in air. The PL properties of Eu²⁺ in VUV and Eu³⁺, Ce³⁺ and Tb³⁺ in UV-VUV region in SrB₂Si₂O₈ were evaluated for the first time. The excitation mechanisms of the O²⁻-Eu³⁺ CT, Ce³⁺f-d and Tb³⁺f-d transitions in UV region as well as the Eu³⁺f-d, O²⁻-Ce³⁺ CT, O²⁻-Tb³⁺ CT transitions and the host lattice absorption in VUV region were established. In addition, first principles calculation within the LDA of the DFT was applied to calculate the electronic structure and linear optical properties of SrB₂Si₂O₈ and the results were compared with the experimental data.     

Synthesis and characterization of monodisperse spherical SiO2@RE2O3 (RE=rare earth elements) and SiO2@Gd2O3:Ln (Ln=Eu, Tb, Dy, Sm, Er, Ho) particles with core-shell structure

Spherical SiO₂ particles have been coated with rare earth oxide layers by a Pechini sol-gel process, leading to the formation of core-shell structured SiO₂@RE₂O₃ (RE=rare earth elements) and SiO₂@Gd₂O₃:Ln³⁺ (Ln=Eu, Tb, Dy, Sm, Er, Ho) particles. X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), photoluminescence (PL), and cathodoluminescence spectra as well as lifetimes were used to characterize the resulting SiO₂@RE₂O₃ (RE=rare earth elements) and SiO₂@Gd₂O₃:Ln³⁺ (Eu³⁺, Tb³⁺, Dy³⁺, Sm³⁺, Er³⁺, Ho³⁺) samples. The obtained core-shell phosphors have perfect spherical shape with narrow size distribution (average size ca. 380 nm), smooth surface and non-agglomeration. The thickness of shells could be easily controlled by changing the number of deposition cycles (40 nm for two deposition cycles). Under the excitation of ultraviolet, the Ln³⁺ ion mainly shows its characteristic emissions in the core-shell particles from Gd₂O₃:Ln³⁺ (Eu³⁺, Tb³⁺, Sm³⁺, Dy³⁺, Er³⁺, Ho³⁺) shells.     

Fabrication and optical properties of core-shell structured spherical SiO2@GdVO4:Eu phosphors via sol-gel process

Europium-doped nanocrystalline GdVO₄ phosphor layers were coated on the surface of preformed submicron silica spheres by sol-gel method. The resulted SiO₂@Gd_0.95Eu_0.05VO₄ core-shell particles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectra (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), photoluminescence (PL) spectra, low voltage cathodoluminescence (CL), time resolved PL spectra and kinetic decays. The XRD results demonstrate that the Gd_0.95Eu_0.05VO₄ layers begin to crystallize on the SiO₂ spheres after annealing at 600 ^°C and the crystallinity increases with raising the annealing temperature. The obtained core-shell phosphors have spherical shape, narrow size distribution (average size ca. 600 nm), non-agglomeration. The thickness of the Gd_0.95Eu_0.05VO₄ shells on the SiO₂ cores could be easily tailored by varying the number of deposition cycles (50 nm for four deposition cycles). PL and CL show that the emissions are dominated by ⁵D₀-⁷F₂ transition of Eu³⁺ (618 nm, red). The PL and CL intensities of Eu³⁺ increase with increasing the annealing temperature and the number of coating cycles. The optimum concentration for Eu³⁺ was determined to be 5 mol% of Gd³⁺ in GdVO₄ host.     

Fabrication and luminescent properties of the core-shell structured YNbO4:Eu/Tb@SiO2 spherical particles

The core-shell structured YNbO₄:Eu³⁺/Tb³⁺@SiO₂ particles were realized by coating the YNbO₄:Eu³⁺/Tb³⁺ phosphors onto the surface of spherical silica via a sol-gel process. The obtained materials were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform IR spectroscopy (FT-IR), photoluminescence (PL) spectra, and cathodoluminescence (CL) spectra. The results indicate that 600 °C annealed samples consist of amorphous silica core and crystalline YNbO₄:Re shell, having perfect spherical morphology with uniform size distribution. Upon excitation by UV or electron beam, these phosphors show the characteristic ⁵D₀-⁷F_1-4 emission lines of Eu³⁺ and the characteristic ⁵D₄-⁷F_3-6 emission lines of Tb³⁺. The PL intensities of Eu³⁺ can be tuned by altering the annealing temperature and the coating number of YNbO₄:Eu³⁺ layers.     

Synthesis,Characterization and Luminescent Properties of La2Zr2O7:Eu3+ Nanorods

The Eu³⁺-doped La₂Zr₂O₇ phosphor with rod-like morphology was successfully synthesized by conventional solid state reaction and hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction patterns, transmission electron microscopy, and photoluminescence spectra were employed to charac-terize its structure and morphology as well as luminescent properties. The results indicated that the red-emitting phosphor La₂Zr₂O₇:Eu³⁺ had well crystallized and belonged to the cubic structure with space group of Fd3m. The as-obtained product mainly appeared as straight nanorods with an average diameter of 47 nm and length of 50-700 nm. The pos-sible growth mechanism was also discussed. It was found that under blue excitation with a wavelength of 466 nm, the La₂Zr₂O₇:Eu³⁺ phosphor exhibited a characteristic red emission at 616 nm that was attributed to the hypersensitive ⁵DO_→⁷F2 _{electric dipole transition of Eu³⁺ ions. Meanwhile, it was more interesting to note that the emission of ⁵D}1_→⁷FJ _{(J=0, 1, 2) transitions and the splitting patterns of ⁵D}0_→⁷FJ _{(J=1, 2, 4) transitions of Eu³⁺ ions can be observed in the luminescent spectra of La2Zr2O7:Eu³⁺. It was demonstrated that Eu³⁺ preferred to occupy a low symmetry site.}     

空气中合成固溶体荧光粉Ba2(Zn, Mg)Si2O7:Ce3+,Eu2+,Eu3+及其发光特性

采用高温固相法在空气中合成了Ba_1.97-yZn_1-xMg_xSi₂O₇:0.03Eu,yCe³⁺系列荧光粉。分别采用X-射线衍射和荧光光谱对所合成荧光粉的物相和发光性质进行了表征。在紫外光330~360 nm激发下,固溶体荧光粉Ba_1.97-yZn_1-xMg_xSi₂O₇:0.03Eu的发射光谱在350~725 nm范围内呈现多谱峰发射,360和500 nm处有强的宽带发射属于Eu²⁺离子的4f⁶5d¹-4f⁷跃迁,590~725 nm红光区窄带谱源于Eu³⁺的⁵D₀-⁷F_J (J=1,2,3,4)跃迁,这表明,在空气气氛中,部分Eu³⁺在Ba_1.97-yZn_1-xMg_xSi₂O₇基质中被还原成了Eu²⁺;当x=0.1时,荧光粉Ba_1.97Zn_0.9Mg_0.1Si₂O₇:0.03Eu的绿色发光最强,表明Eu³⁺被还原成Eu²⁺离子的程度最大。当共掺入Ce³⁺离子后,形成Ba_1.97-yZn_0.9Mg_0.1Si₂O₇:0.03Eu,yCe³⁺荧光粉体系,其发光随着Ce³⁺离子浓度的增大由蓝绿区经白光区到达橙红区;发现名义组成为Ba_1.96Zn_0.9Mg_0.1Si₂O₇:0.01Ce³⁺,0.03Eu的荧光粉的色坐标为(0.323,0.311),接近理想白光,是一种有潜在应用价值的白光荧光粉。讨论了稀土离子在Ba₂Zn_0.9Mg_0.1Si₂O₇基质中的能量传递与发光机理。