Luminescence Properties of Mn2+-Doped Sol-Gel Glasses

Mn²⁺-doped 1Al₂O₃-99SiO₂ glasses have been prepared by a sol-gel method and their photoluminescence (PL) properties have been studied for the first time. The effect of ZrO₂ and TiO₂ on the luminescence properties has also been studied. In addition, the PL of Mn: 1Al₂O₃-99SiO₂ is compared with Mn:SiO₂. The emission spectra of all the samples containing Al₂O₃ show a band around 620 nm, and the sample without Al₂O₃ shows two bands around 620 and 650 nm. These emission bands are all assigned to the ⁴T₁ ⁶A₁ transition of octahedrally coordinated Mn²⁺ · ZrO₂ and TiO₂ have fluorescence quenching effect. The relative fluorescence intensity of Mn²⁺-doped sol-gel 1Al₂O₃-99SiO₂ is much stronger than that of Mn²⁺-doped sol-gel SiO₂. The difference of the emission wavelength between host materials is explained in terms of the ligand field effect.