Investigation on Energy Transfer and Luminescent Properties of K3Gd(PO4)2:RE3+ (RE = Eu,Tb) Under UV and VUV Excitation

K₃Gd(PO₄)₂:RE³⁺ (RE = Eu, Tb) are prepared by solid‐state reaction and their photoluminescence (PL) properties are investigated under UV and VUV excitation, respectively. The obtained experimental data show that no energy transfer happens among the activator ions Tb³⁺ or Eu³⁺ under UV excitation. Under 147‐nm excitation, the strongest emission intensity of K₃Gd(PO₄)₂:RE³⁺ (RE = Eu, Tb) is obtained when the activator ions Tb³⁺ or Eu³⁺ concentration is 0.8 mol, the integrate emission intensity of K₃Gd_0.2(PO₄)₂:0.8Tb³⁺ is about 204% of commercial phosphor Zn_1.96SiO₄:0.04Mn²⁺ with chromaticity coordinates of (0.340, 0.561) and the decay time of about 5.09 ms under 147‐nm excitation. We analyze the experimental data and propose a possible energy‐transfer mechanism under 147‐nm excitation.     

Synthesis,photoluminescence properties and energy transfer behavior of color-tunable fluorapatite phosphor Sr9Gd(PO4)5(SiO4)F2:Tb3+/Sm3+

Tb³⁺-Sm³⁺ co-doped Sr₉Gd(PO₄)₅(SiO₄)F₂ (SGPSF) phosphors were prepared through a solid-state reaction, and their luminescence properties as well as energy transfer mechanism have been investigated in detail. The SGPSF:Tb³⁺, Sm³⁺ phosphors system could be efficiently excited at wavelengths ranging from 200 to 500 nm, which is well matched with the spectra of near ultraviolet chips. The emission of SGPSF:Tb³⁺, Sm³⁺ phosphor covers the entire visible region with sharp peaks in the blue, green, and red regions. The emission color of SGPSF:Tb³⁺, Sm³⁺ could be adjusted from green (0.275, 0.378) to red (0.519, 0.295) by controlling the doping content of Sm³⁺/Tb³⁺.     

Novel Emitting‐Color Tunable Phosphors Ba3Y2(BO3)4:Ce3+,Tb3+ with Efficient Energy Transfer for Near‐UV Light‐Emitting Diodes

This work presents the ultraviolet–visible spectroscopic properties of Ba₃Y₂(BO₃)₄:Ce³⁺,Tb³⁺ phosphors prepared by a high‐temperature solid‐state reaction. Under ultraviolet light excitation, tunable emission from the blue to yellowish‐green region was obtained by changing the doping concentration of Tb³⁺ when the content of Ce³⁺ is fixed. The efficient energy transfer process between Ce³⁺ and Tb³⁺ ions was observed and confirmed in terms of corresponding excitation and emission spectra. In addition, the energy transfer mechanism between Ce³⁺ and Tb³⁺ was proved to be dipole–dipole interaction in Ba₃Y₂(BO₃)₄:Ce³⁺,Tb³⁺ phosphor. By utilizing the principle of energy transfer and appropriate tuning of Ce³⁺/Tb³⁺ contents, Ba₃Y(BO₃)₄:Ce³⁺,Tb³⁺ phosphors can have potential application as an UV‐convertible phosphor for near‐UV excited white light‐emitting diodes.     

A single‐phase full‐color emitting phosphor Na3Sc2(PO4)3:Eu2+/Tb3+/Mn2+ with near‐zero thermal quenching and high quantum yield for near‐UV converted warm w‐LEDs

A single‐phase full‐color emitting phosphor Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Eu²⁺/Tb³⁺/Mn²⁺ has been synthesized by high‐temperature solid‐state method. The crystal structure is measured by X‐ray diffraction. The emission can be tuned from blue to green/red/white through reasonable adjustment of doping ratio among Eu²⁺/Tb³⁺/Mn²⁺ ions. The photoluminescence, energy‐transfer efficiency and concentration quenching mechanisms in Eu²⁺‐Tb³⁺/Eu²⁺‐Mn²⁺ co‐doped samples were studied in detail. All as‐obtained samples show high quantum yield and robust resistance to thermal quenching at evaluated temperature from 30 to 200°C. Notably, the wide‐gamut emission covering the full visible range of Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Eu²⁺/Tb³⁺/Mn²⁺ gives an outstanding thermal quenching behavior near‐zero thermal quenching at 150°C/less than 20% emission intensity loss at 200°C, and high quantum yield‐66.0% at 150°C/56.9% at 200°C. Moreover, the chromaticity coordinates of Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Eu²⁺/Tb³⁺/Mn²⁺ keep stable through the whole evaluated temperature range. Finally, near‐UV w‐LED devices were fabricated, the white LED device (CCT = 4740.4 K, Ra = 80.9) indicates that Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Eu²⁺/Tb³⁺/Mn²⁺ may be a promising candidate for phosphor‐converted near‐UV w‐LEDs.     

Preparation,luminescence properties and energy transfer of Ca9Y(PO4)7: Eu2+‐Tb3+ phosphors

Tb³⁺‐doped and Eu²⁺, Tb³⁺ co‐doped Ca₉Y(PO₄)₇ phosphors were synthesized by conventional solid‐state method. Additionally, the luminescence properties, decay behavior and energy transfer mechanism have already been investigated in detail. The green emission intensity of Tb³⁺ ions under NUV excitation is weak due to its spin‐forbidden f‐f transition. While Eu²⁺ can efficiently absorb NUV light and yield broad blue emission, most of which can be absorbed by Tb³⁺ ions. Thus, the emission color can be easily tuned from cyan to green through the energy transfer of Eu²⁺→Tb³⁺ in Ca₉Y(PO₄)₇:Eu²⁺,Tb³⁺ phosphor. In this work, the phenomenon of cross‐relaxation between ⁵D₃ and ⁵D₄ are also mentioned. The energy transfer is confirmed to be resulted from a quadrupole‐quadrupole mechanism.     

Energy transfer and multicolor tunable emission in single-phase Tb3+, Eu3+ co-doped Sr3La(PO4)3 phosphors

A series of green-to-red color-tunable Sr₃La(PO₄)₃:Tb³⁺, Eu³⁺ phosphors were prepared by high temperature solid-state method. The crystal structures, photoluminescence properties, fluorescence lifetimes, and energy transfer of Sr₃La(PO₄)₃:Tb³⁺, Eu³⁺ were systematically investigated in detail. The obtained phosphors show both a green emission from Tb³⁺ and a red emission from Eu³⁺ with considerable intensity under ultraviolet (UV) excitation (~377 nm). The emission colors of the phosphors can be tuned from green (0.304, 0.589) through yellow (0.401, 0.505) and eventually to red (0.557, 0.392) due to efficient Tb³⁺-Eu³⁺ energy transfer (ET). The Tb³⁺→Eu³⁺ energy transfer process was demonstrated to be quadrupole-quadrupole mechanism by Inokuti-Hirayama model, with maximum ET efficiency of 86.3%. The results indicate that the Sr₃La(PO₄)₃:Tb³⁺, Eu³⁺ phosphors might find potential applications in the field of lighting and displays.     

Color tunable Ba3Lu(PO4)3:Tb3+,Mn2+ phosphor via Tb3+→Mn2+ energy transfer for white LEDs

Series of UV excited Ba₃Lu(PO₄)₃:Tb³⁺,Mn²⁺ phosphors with tunable green to red emissions had been prepared using solid state reactions. Powder X-ray diffraction and Rietveld structure refinement were used to investigate the phase purity and crystal structure of the prepared samples. Under UV excitation, the Ba₃Lu(PO₄)₃:Tb³⁺,Mn²⁺ samples exhibited not only the typical Tb³⁺ emission peaks but also the broad emission band of Mn²⁺ ions due to the efficient Tb³⁺→Mn²⁺ energy transfer which had been verified by luminescence spectra and decay curves. Utilizing the Inokuti-Hirayama model, the Tb³⁺→Mn²⁺ energy transfer mechanism was determined to be the electronic dipole–quadrupole interaction. Moreover, the emission spectra of Ba₃Lu(PO₄)₃:0.80Tb³⁺,0.015Mn²⁺ sample at different temperatures manifested that our prepared phosphors possessed good thermal stability. The luminescence properties investigation results revealed the potential value of Ba₃Lu(PO₄)₃F:Tb³⁺,Mn²⁺ in application for UV excited phosphor converted white light emitting diodes.     

White‐Emitting Tuning and Energy Transfer in Eu2+/Mn2+‐Substituted Apatite‐Type Fluorophosphate Phosphors

Herein, a series of Eu²⁺&Mn²⁺substituted fluorophosphates Ca₆Gd₂Na₂(PO₄)₆F₂ phosphor with apatite structure have been synthesized and investigated by the powder X‐ray diffraction, photoluminescence spectra, fluorescence decay curves, thermal quenching, and chromaticity properties. Particularly, both Eu²⁺ and Mn²⁺ emissions at the two different lattice sites 4f and 6h in Ca₆Gd₂Na₂(PO₄)₆F₂ matrix have been identified and discussed. The dual energy transfer of Eu²⁺→Mn²⁺ and Gd³⁺→Mn²⁺ in Ca₆Gd₂Na₂(PO₄)₆F₂:Eu²⁺,Mn²⁺ samples have been validated and confirmed by the photoluminescence spectra. The dependence of color‐tunable on the activator concentration of Mn²⁺ was investigated to realize white light emission. By varying the doping concentration of the Mn²⁺ ion, a series of tunable colors including pure white light and candle light are obtained under the excitation of 350 nm. Moreover, the fluorescence decay curves have been fitted and analyzed using the Inokuti–Hirayama theoretical model to estimate the Eu–Mn interaction mechanism. We also investigated temperature‐dependent photoluminescence quenching characteristics according to the Arrhenius equation. Preliminary studies on the properties of the phosphor indicated that the obtained phosphors might have potential application as a single‐component white‐emitting phosphor for UV‐based white LEDs.     

Synthesis and luminescence enhancement of red-emitting Sr9Y(PO4)7:Eu3+ phosphor through Gd3+ co-doping for white light-emitting diodes

A series of Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:Eu³⁺ and Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:Eu³⁺, Gd³⁺ red-emitting phosphors were prepared via a high-temperature solid-state method, Gd³⁺ ion was co-doped in Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:Eu³⁺ as sensitizer to enhance the luminescence property. The X-ray diffraction results verify that the structure of the as-prepared samples is consistent with the standard Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇ phase. All the Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:Eu³⁺ samples show both characteristic emission peaks at 594 nm and 614 nm under near-ultraviolet excitation of 394 nm. The co-doping of Gd³⁺ significantly improves the luminescence intensity of the Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:Eu³⁺ phosphors due to the crystal field environment effect and energy transfer of Gd³⁺→Eu³⁺ caused by the introduction of Gd³⁺, especially Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:0.11Eu³⁺, 0.05Gd³⁺, which emission intensity is higher than that of Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:0.11Eu³⁺ by 1.21 times. The color purity and lifetime of Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:0.11Eu³⁺, 0.05Gd³⁺ phosphor are 88.26% and 3.7615 ms, respectively. A w-LED device was packaged via coating the as-prepared phosphor on n-UV chip of 395 nm with commercial phosphors. These results exhibit that the Sr₉Y(PO₄)₇:Eu³⁺, Gd³⁺ red-emitting phosphor can be used as a red component in the w-LEDs application.     

Synthesis and luminescence properties of single‐component Ca5(PO4)3F:Dy3+, Eu3+ white‐emitting phosphors

A series of Ca₅(PO₄)₃F:Dy³⁺, Eu³⁺ phosphors was synthesized by a solid‐state reaction method. The XRD results show that all as‐prepared Ca₅(PO₄)₃F:Dy³⁺, Eu³⁺ samples match well with the standard Ca₅(PO₄)₃F structure and the doped Dy³⁺ and Eu³⁺ ions have no effect on the crystal structure. Under near‐ultraviolet excitation, Dy³⁺ doped Ca₅(PO₄)₃F phosphor shows blue (486 nm) and yellow (579 nm) emissions, which correspond to ⁴F_9/2→⁶H_15/2 and ⁴F_9/2→⁶H_13/2 transitions respectively. Eu³⁺ co‐doped Ca₅(PO₄)₃F:Dy³⁺ phosphor shows the additional red emission of Eu³⁺ at 631 nm, and an improved color rendering index. The chromaticity coordinates of Ca₅(PO₄)₃F:Dy³⁺, Eu³⁺ phosphors also indicate the excellent warm white emission characteristics and low correlated color temperature. Overall, these results suggest that the Ca₅(PO₄)₃F:Dy³⁺, Eu³⁺ phosphors have potential applications in warm white light‐emitting diodes as single‐component phosphor.     

New apatite-type phosphor Ca9La(PO4)5(SiO4)F2:Tb3+,Dy3+ with improved color rendering index

Ca₉La(PO₄)₅(SiO₄)F₂:Tb³⁺,Dy³⁺ (CLPSF:Tb³⁺,Dy³⁺) phosphors were successfully prepared using the traditional solid-state technique. The crystal structure was refined and the luminescence properties have been examined in detail. The band gap and electronic structure of Ca₉La(PO₄)₅(SiO₄)F₂ were performed by the periodic density functional theory (DFT) calculation. The spectral and fluorescence decay dynamics of CLPSF:Tb³⁺,Dy³⁺ show that the energy transfer behavior between Tb³⁺ and Dy³⁺ ions is observed. The CLPSF:Tb³⁺,Dy³⁺ phosphors can be efficiently excitable at the wavelengths range from 300 to 500 nm. The emission spectrum covers the whole visible part of the spectra with the sharp emission bands in red, green, and blue regions. The correlated color temperature (CCT) and color rendering index (CRI) of white light emission could be improved by the fine-tuning of the Tb³⁺ and Dy³⁺ ions ration in accordance with the energy transfer behavior. Thus, the CLPSF:Tb³⁺,Dy³⁺ phosphor could be used as a material for the near-ultraviolet (n-UV) and white light-emitting diodes (w-LEDs).     

TL/OSL Properties of Green Emitting LiMgPO<Subscript>4</Subscript>:Tb<Superscript>3+</Superscript>, B (LMPTB) Phosphor for Radiation Dosimetry

The series of LiMgPO₄:Tb³⁺/Tb, B phosphors were synthesized via modified solid state method. The structural and morphological characterization was done through X-ray diffraction and Scanning Electronic Microscope. Additionally, photoluminescence (PL), thermoluminescence (TL) and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) properties of prepared phosphors were studied. Also Linear Modulated-OSL, Non Linear OSL, dose response, fading and reusability were studied. The LiMg_(0.85)PO₄:_0.005Tb³⁺, _0.01B (LMPTB) phosphor shows good OSL sensitivity, which was found to be 1.70 and 1.04 times more than α-Al₂O₃:C (BARC) and LiMgPO₄:Tb³⁺, B (BARC) phosphors respectively and minimum detectable dose was found to be 16.4 μGy with 3σ of background. The effective atomic number of LMPTB phosphor (Z_eff = 11.44) is nearly similar to Z_eff of α-Al₂O₃:C phosphor (Z_eff = 11.28). The prepared phosphor show linear dose response in the range 0.04–24 Gy and fading of the OSL signal was found to be about 34 % in 35 days. The TL glow curve of LiMgPO₄:Tb phosphor was stable after addition of boron. The PL spectra show characteristic emission of Tb³⁺ ion. This prepared phosphor is applicable personal monitoring and environmental monitoring.     

Novel Broadband Excited and Linear Red‐Emitting Ba2Y(BO3)2Cl: Ce3+, Tb3+, Eu3+ Phosphor: Luminescence and Energy Transfer

A series of Ce³⁺, Tb³⁺, Eu³⁺ tri‐doped Ba₂Y(BO₃)₂Cl red‐emitting phosphor have been synthesized by solid‐state method. The Ce³⁺→Tb³⁺→Eu³⁺ energy‐transfer scheme has been proposed to realize the sensitization of Eu³⁺ ion emission by Ce³⁺ ions. Following this energy‐transfer model, near‐UV convertible Eu³⁺‐activated red phosphors have been obtained in Ba₂Y(BO₃)₂Cl: Ce³⁺, Tb³⁺, Eu³⁺ phosphors. Energy transfers from Ce³⁺ to Tb³⁺, and Tb³⁺ to Eu³⁺, as well as corresponding energy‐transfer efficiencies are investigated. The combination of narrow‐line red emission and near‐UV broadband excitation makes Ba₂Y(BO₃)₂Cl: Ce³⁺, Tb³⁺, Eu³⁺ as a novel and efficient red phosphor for NUV LED applications.     

Multicolour tunable luminescence of thermal-stable Ce3+/Tb3+/Eu3+-triactivated Ca3Gd(GaO)3(BO3)4 phosphors via Ce3+ → Tb3+ → Eu3+ energy transfer for near-UV WLEDs applications

A series of single-component blue, green and red phosphors have been fabricated based on the Ca₃Gd(GaO)₃(BO₃)₄ host through doping of the Ce³⁺/Tb³⁺/Eu³⁺ ions, and their crystal structure and photoluminescence properties have been discussed in detail. A terbium bridge model via Ce³⁺ → Tb³⁺ → Eu³⁺ energy transfer has been studied. The emission colours of the phosphors can be tuned from blue (0.1661, 0.0686) to green (0.3263, 0.4791) and eventually to red (0.5284, 0.4040) under a single 344 nm UV excitation as the result of the Ce³⁺ → Tb³⁺ → Eu³⁺ energy transfer. The energy transfer mechanisms of Ce³⁺ → Tb³⁺ and Tb³⁺ → Eu³⁺ were found to be dipole-dipole interactions. Importantly, Ca₃Gd(GaO)₃(BO₃)_4:Ce³⁺,Tb³⁺,Eu³⁺ phosphors had high internal quantum efficiency. Moreover, the study on the temperature-dependent emission spectra revealed that the Ca₃Gd(GaO)₃(BO₃)_4:Ce³⁺,Tb³⁺,Eu³⁺ phosphors possessed good thermal stability. The above results indicate that the phosphors can be applied into white light-emitting diodes as single-component multi-colour phosphors.     

Phase Transformation in Ca3(PO4)2:Eu2+ via the Controlled Quenching and Increased Eu2+ Content: Identification of New Cyan‐Emitting α‐Ca3(PO4)2:Eu2+ Phosphor

A case of phosphor is reported where the cooling rate parameter significantly influences the luminescence property. By quenching the sample after the high‐temperature solid‐state reaction at 1250°C, we successfully prepared the Eu²⁺‐doped α form Ca₃(PO₄)₂ (α‐TCP:Eu²⁺) as a new kind of bright cyan‐emitting phosphor. The unusual emission color variation (from cyan to blue) depends on the cooling rate after sintering and Eu²⁺ doping level as it was observed in the TCP‐based phosphors. By the Rietveld analysis, it is revealed that the cyan‐ and blue‐emitting phosphors are two different TCP forms crystallizing in the monoclinic (space group P2₁/a, α‐TCP) and the rhombohedral structure (space group R3c, β‐TCP), respectively. Upon 365 nm UV light excitation, α‐TCP:Eu²⁺ exhibits an asymmetric broad‐band cyan emission peaking at 480 nm, while β‐TCP:Eu²⁺ displays a relatively narrow‐band blue emission peaking at 416 nm. The Eu²⁺‐doping in Ca₃(PO₄)₂ shifts the upper temperature limit of the stable structural range of β form from 1125°C to ≥1250°C. Moreover, the crystal structures of α/β‐TCP:Eu²⁺ were compared in the aspects of compactness and cation site sets. The emission thermal stability of α/β‐TCP:Eu²⁺ was comparatively characterized and the difference was related to the specific host structural features.     

Photoluminescence Properties of Color‐Tunable Ca3La6(SiO4)6: Ce3+, Tb3+ Phosphors

A series of newly developed color‐tunable Ca₃La₆(SiO₄)₆: Ce³⁺, Tb³⁺ phosphors were successfully prepared in this study. The crystal structures of the prepared phosphors were revealed to be hexagonal with space group P6₃/m, and the lattice parameters were evaluated via utilizing the Rietveld refinement method. Upon excitation at 288 nm, the emission spectra of Ce³⁺and Tb³⁺ ions co‐doped Ca₃La₆(SiO₄)₆ phosphors included a blue emission band and several emission lines. The blue emission band with a peak at 420 nm originated in the f–d transitions of Ce³⁺ ions, and the emission lines in the range of 450–650 nm were assigned to the ⁵D₄ → ⁷F_J (J = 6, 5, 4, 3) transitions of Tb³⁺ ions. Increasing the doping content of Tb³⁺ ions considerably strengthened Tb³⁺ emission and reduced Ce³⁺ emission owing to the energy transfer from Ce³⁺ to Tb³⁺ ions. The mechanism of the energy transfer was confirmed to be a dipole–dipole interaction. The effective energy transfer from Ce³⁺ to Tb³⁺ ions caused a color shift from purplish‐blue to yellowish‐green. Color‐tunable Ca₃La₆(SiO₄)₆: Ce³⁺, Tb³⁺ phosphors have the potential to be utilized in light‐emitting diodes with proper modulation of the amount of Tb³⁺ ions.     

White Light Emission from Sr2LiSiO4F:Sm3+,Tb3+ Phosphors Under Near‐UV Light Excitation

The Tb³⁺/Sm³⁺ codoped Sr₂LiSiO₄F white emitting phosphors were synthesized by a solid‐state reaction technique at high temperature. The X‐ray diffraction patterns, photoluminescence properties, and decay behaviors have been investigated. The Tb³⁺ emissions (blue and green) and Sm³⁺ emissions (orange) are both observed in the codoped samples Sr₂LiSiO₄F: 0.05Sm³⁺, xTb³⁺ by near‐UV light (370 nm) exciting. The white emission has been obtained by adjusting Tb³⁺ doping concentration at 5% (x = 0.05). These luminescent powders are expected to be a potential candidate as white emitting phosphor for near‐ultraviolet InGaN‐based white light‐emitting diodes.     

Preparation and Luminescence Properties of Blue‐emitting Phosphor Ba2Ca(PO4)2:Eu2+

Using the conventional high temperature solid‐state reaction method Ba₂Ca(PO₄)₂:Eu²⁺ phosphors were prepared. The phase structure, photoluminescence (PL) properties, and the PL thermal stability of the samples were investigated, respectively. Under the excitation at 365 nm, the phosphor exhibited an asymmetric broad‐band blue emission with peak at 454 nm, which is ascribed to the 4f–5d transition of Eu²⁺. It was further proved that the dipole–dipole interactions results in the concentration quenching of Eu²⁺ in Ba₂Ca_1?x (PO₄)₂:xEu²⁺ phosphors. When the temperature turned up to 150°C, the emission intensity of Ba₂Ca_0.99(PO₄)₂:0.01Eu²⁺ phosphor was 59.07% of the initial value at room temperature. The activation energy ΔE was calculated to be 0.30 eV, which proved the good thermal stability of the sample. All the properties indicated that the blue‐emitting Ba₂Ca(PO₄)₂:Eu²⁺ phosphor has potential application in white LEDs.     

LiCaAlN2:Eu3+/Tb3+: Red and green phosphors for LEDs and FEDs with charge transfer transition in n‐UV region

LiCaAlN₂:Eu³⁺/Tb³⁺ red/green phosphors were successfully prepared by conventional solid‐state reaction. The photoluminescence (PL) properties and cathodoluminescence (CL) properties of LiCaAlN₂:Eu³⁺/Tb³⁺ were investigated in detail. The Eu³⁺ (Tb³⁺) doped LiCaAlN₂ shows red (green) emission peaking at 615 nm (550 nm). Monitored at 615 nm (550 nm), it is interesting to found that LiCaAlN₂:Eu³⁺ (LiCaAlN₂:Tb³⁺) has a broad charge transfer transition in the range of 350‐450 nm (275‐375 nm) peaking at 380 nm (343 nm), which can be efficiently excited by n‐UV light‐emitting diodes (LEDs). Under electron beam excitation, LiCaAlN₂:Tb³⁺ exhibited a good resistance to the current saturation. The white LED has also been fabricated with blue, green, and LiCaAlN₂:Eu³⁺ red phosphor. The results indicate that LiCaAlN₂:Eu³⁺/Tb³⁺ could be conducive to the development of phosphor‐converted LEDs and field emission displays (FEDs).     

Photo/cathodoluminescence and stability of Gd2O2S:Tb,Pr green phosphor hexagons calcined from layered hydroxide sulfate

Hydrothermal reaction at 150°C and pH = 10 for 24 hours crystallized (Gd,RE)₂(OH)₄SO₄ layered hydroxide sulfate (monoclinic structure; RE = Pr, Tb), from which Gd₂O₂S:RE (hexagonal structure) green phosphor hexagons were derived via facile dehydration in flowing H₂ at 1200°C. Rietveld refinement of the XRD patterns yielded cell dimensions that confirmed the direct crystallization of solid solution. Photoluminescence (PL) study at room temperature found absolute quantum yields of ~25.1% and 28.4%, CIE chromaticity coordinates of (0.145, 0.679) and (0.326, 0.566), and fluorescence lifetimes of ~2.36 μs and 1.21 ms for Pr³⁺ and Tb³⁺ under 300 and 275 nm UV excitations, respectively. Temperature‐dependent PL analysis (25‐200°C) indicated that both the Pr³⁺‐ and Tb³⁺‐doped phosphors have favorably good thermal stability and retained ~65% and 80% at 100°C and ~41% and 47% at 200°C of their initial emission intensities, respectively. The activation energy for the thermal quenching of PL was determined to be ~0.221 (Pr³⁺) and 0.314 eV (Tb³⁺). Cathodoluminescence (CL) found that both the phosphors exhibit increasingly higher emission intensity/brightness at a higher acceleration voltage (up to 7 kV) or beam current (up to 50 μA) and are stable under electron bombardment in the studied range. Raising beam current was suggested to be more effective to enhance CL.