Single-phase white-emitting and tunable color phosphor Na3Sc2(PO4)3:Eu2+,Dy3+: Synthesis,luminescence and energy transfer

A series of Eu²⁺/Dy³⁺ single doped and co-doped Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃ phosphors were synthesized by the high-temperature solid-state method, and their phase, morphology, and luminescence properties were characterized. Under the excitation of 370 nm, the Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Eu²⁺,Dy³⁺ phosphor can emit white light whose spectrum is composed of a broad emission band centered at 460 nm and the other three peaks at 483, 577, and 672 nm, respectively. There is energy transfer from Eu²⁺ to Dy³⁺ ion in Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Eu²⁺,Dy³⁺ phosphor due to the good overlap between the emission spectrum of Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Eu²⁺ and the excitation spectrum of Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Dy³⁺, which is further confirmed by the fluorescence lifetime decrease of Eu²⁺ ion with the increase of Dy³⁺ concentration. The process of energy transfer is via dipole–quadruple interaction which is confirmed by applying Dexter's theory. By increasing the Dy³⁺ concentration, the color coordinates of the Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:0.01Eu²⁺,xDy³⁺ phosphors can be adjusted from blue to white, and then to yellow. The optimized concentration of Dy³⁺ ions is 4.0 mol%, beyond which the concentration quenching will take place. The Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:Eu²⁺,Dy³⁺ phosphor shows fairly good resistance to thermal quenching behavior, of which the emission intensity at 423 K can maintain 90.3% of the initial value (298 K). These results suggest that the Na₃Sc₂(PO₄)₃:0.01Eu²⁺,xDy³⁺ phosphors have potential applications as the color-tunable or a single-phase white emitting phosphor in white LEDs.