Modification on luminescent properties of SrAl2O4:Eu, Dy phosphor by Yb ions doping

The modification effect of the doping of Yb³⁺ ions, as an auxiliary activator, onto the luminescent properties of SrAl₂O₄:Eu²⁺, Dy³⁺ phosphor was studied for the first time. The phosphorescent nanoparticles were prepared by the combustion method. The experimental results indicate that the appropriate doping of Yb³⁺ ions largely improves phosphorescence of the phosphors with more intense luminescence, higher brightness, and no change in emission spectrum peaked at 513 nm. Meanwhile the decay speed of the phosphor nanoparticles rises increasingly with the doping ratio of Yb³⁺ ions, whereas an excessive Yb³⁺ ions doping leads to the disappearance of the pure monoclinic phase of SrAl₂O₄ and the appearance of the weak diffraction lines of the YbAlO₃ phase. The phosphorescent mechanism of the phosphors could be well understood based on the hole, thermally released from the trap levels of Dy³⁺ and Yb³⁺.