The luminescence of ZnO ceramics

The luminescence properties of ZnO ceramics with grains 100–5000 nm sintered by different techniques from nanopowders were studied. The luminescence decay times were compared with that obtained for ZnO single crystal. The temperature dependence of non-exponential decay of defect luminescence (2.0–2.6 eV) was measured in wide time, intensity and temperature range. The luminescence decay kinetic at T ≤ 20 K shows the decay close to I(t) ～ t^?1 dependence. At temperature region 50–250 K the decay kinetics is more complicate since the TSL was observed in this temperature region. It is shown that the luminescence properties of NP and ceramics strongly depend on defect distribution on grains surface and the volume/surface ratio determine the luminescence decay in ZnO nanostructures and ceramics.