Hydrothermal synthesis of two photoluminescent nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots emitted green and khaki luminescence

A simple and effective chemical synthesis of the photoluminescent nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots (N-GQDs) biomaterial is reported. Using the hydrothermal treatment of graphene oxide (GO) in the presence of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and ammonia, the N-GQDs are synthesized through H₂O₂ exfoliating the GO into nanocrystals with lateral dimensions and ammonia passivating the generated active surface. Then, after a dialytic separation, two water-soluble N-GQDs with average size of about 2.1 nm/6.2 nm, which emit green/khaki luminescence and exhibit excitation dependent/independent photoluminescence (PL) behaviors, are obtained. In addition, it is also demonstrated that these two N-GQDs are stable over a broad pH range and have the upconversion PL property, showing this approach provides a simple and effective method to synthesize the functional N-GQDs.     

Blue–white–orange tunable luminescence from Ca6La2Na2(PO4)6F2:Eu,Mn phosphors excited by UV light

New Eu²⁺ and/or Mn²⁺ activated Ca₆La₂Na₂(PO₄)₆F₂ phosphors were prepared and their photoluminescence properties upon ultraviolet excitation were investigated. Phosphor Ca₆La₂Na₂(PO₄)₆F₂:Eu²⁺,Mn²⁺ shows a broad blue emission band and an orange emission band, which originates from Eu²⁺ and Mn²⁺, respectively. The resonant type energy transfer from Eu²⁺ to Mn²⁺ was demonstrated, and the energy transfer efficiency was also calculated according to their PL decay curves. Tuning of the content of Mn²⁺ can generate the varied hues from blue to white and eventually to orange. Our results demonstrate that the phosphor is promising for producing UV-LED-based white LEDs.     

Annealing effect on structures and luminescence of amorphous SiN films

The microstructures and chemical bonding configurations of amorphous silicon nitride films with various compositions are investigated. Room temperature photoluminescence is observed which depended on the film concentrations. The post-annealing treatment at moderate temperature region of 700-900 °C is performed and the annealing effect on the structures and luminescence is studied. It is found that the structural rearrangements occurred after thermal annealing due to the effusion of hydrogen from the films. The luminescence is also changed after annealing and the possible originations are briefly discussed.     

Synthesis of BaMoO4:Er/Yb particles by an MAM method and their upconversion photoluminescence properties

Er³⁺-doped BaMoO₄ (BaMoO₄:Er³⁺) and Er³⁺/Yb³⁺ co-doped BaMoO₄ (BaMoO₄:Er³⁺/Yb³⁺) particles were successfully synthesized by a cyclic microwave-assisted metathetic (MAM) method, and show fine and homogeneous morphology with particle sizes of 0.5–1 μm. At 980-nm excitation, BaMoO₄:Er³⁺ and BaMoO₄:Er³⁺/Yb³⁺ particles exhibited a strong 525-nm emission band and a weak 550-nm emission band in the green region. The Raman spectrum of BaMoO₄:Er³⁺/Yb³⁺ particles indicated the appearance of additional peaks at higher frequencies (390 and 505 cm⁻¹) and at lower frequencies (218 and 255 cm⁻¹).     

Study on preparation and characterization of MOF based lanthanide doped luminescent coordination polymers

Coordination polymers (metal–organic frameworks or MOFs) offer the opportunity for fine-tuning the luminescence behavior because of the possibility to entrap in the network pores molecules that can influence the lanthanide (Ln) emission. In this study, Zn (II) and polycarboxylate based MOFs were first pre-formed by solvothermal method, then considered as host-matrix for in situ doping of low-input concentration of Eu³⁺ and Tb³⁺ (two most commonly used lanthanides in life science assays), and afterwards lanthanide doped luminescent materials were synthesized. Different characterizations (X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy-Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS)) were carried out to confirm accordingly MOF's crystallinity, the structure and chemical composition. The study on luminescent properties of the material has revealed an efficient energy transfer from the ligand excited states to the Eu³⁺ and Tb³⁺ f-excited states. With quite low input concentrations (8–15%) of doped rare earth ions, these complexes displayed intense emissions at room temperature and proved to be good candidates for red and green emitter luminescent materials. Generally, this design concept can be extended for the preparation of other rare earth coordination polymers.     

Unusual broadening of the NIR luminescence of Er-doped Nb2O5 nanocrystals embedded in silica host: Preparation and their structural and spectroscopic study for photonics applications

This paper reports on the preparation of novel sol-gel erbium-doped SiO₂-based nanocomposites embedded with Nb₂O₅ nanocrystals fabricated using a bottom-up method and describes their structural, morphological, and luminescence characterization. To prepare the glass ceramics, we synthesized xerogels containing Si/Nb molar ratios of 90:10 up to 50:50 at room temperature, followed by annealing at 900, 1000, or 1100 °C for 10 h. We identified crystallization accompanying host densification in all the nanocomposites with orthorhombic (T-phase) or monoclinic (M-phase) Nb₂O₅ nanocrystals dispersed in the amorphous SiO₂ phase, depending on the niobium content and annealing temperature. A high-intensity broadband emission in the near-infrared region assigned to the ⁴I_13/2 → ⁴I_15/2 transition of the Er³⁺ ions was registered for all the nanocomposites. The shape and the bandwidth changed with the Nb₂O₅ crystalline phase, with values achieving up to 81 nm. Er³⁺ ions were located mainly in Nb₂O₅-rich regions, and the complex structure of the different Nb₂O₅ polymorphs accounted for the broadening in the emission spectra. The materials containing the T-phase, displayed higher luminescence intensity, longer ⁴I_13/2 lifetime and broader bandwidth. In conclusion, these nanostructured materials are potential candidates for photonic applications like optical amplifiers and WDM devices operating in the S, C, and L telecommunication bands.     

Dark-red-emitting CdTe0.5Se0.5/Cd0.5Zn0.5S quantum dots: Effect of chemicals on properties

CdTe_0.5Se_0.5/Cd_0.5Zn_0.5S core/shell quantum dots (QDs) with a tunable photoluminescence (PL) range from yellow to dark red (up to a PL peak wavelength of 683 nm) were fabricated using various reaction systems. The core/shell QDs created in the reaction solution of trioctylamine (TOA) and oleic acid (OA) at 300 °C exhibited narrow PL spectra and a related low PL efficiency (38%). In contrast, the core/shell QDs prepared in the solution of 1-octadecene (ODE) and hexadecylamine (HDA) at 200 °C revealed a high PL efficiency (70%) and broad PL spectra. This phenomenon is ascribed that the precursor of Cd, reaction temperature, solvents, and ligands affected the formation process of the shell. The slow growth rate of the shell in the solution of ODE and HDA made QDs with a high PL efficiency. Metal acetate salts without reaction with HDA led to the core/shell QDs with a broad size distribution.     

Novel quantum dots: Water-based CdTeSe/ZnS and YAG hybrid phosphor for white light-emitting diodes

Novel water-based core/shell CdTeSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) were synthesized by aqueous method. The CdTeSe/ZnS QDs were investigated by high resolution transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectrometry, UV–vis absorption spectra, and photoluminescence spectrum. The as-prepared QDs capped with ZnS shell were spherical in shape with an excellent quantum yield of 16% and emitted bright yellow light. In addition, the CdTeSe/ZnS QDs can be excited by blue or near-UV region, which is an advantage over wavelength converters for white light-emitting diodes (LEDs). White LEDs based on CdTeSe/ZnS QDs, commercially known as Y₃Al₅O₁₂:Ce³⁺ (YAG:Ce), and hybrid phosphor of CdTeSe/ZnS QDs and YAG:Ce, were fabricated. The luminescent properties of the resultant white LEDs were evaluated. The higher red-component in the emission spectrum from CdTeSe/ZnS QDs increased the color rendering index (CRI) value of the commercial YAG:Ce-based white LEDs, and the hybrid phosphor-based white LED had CIE-1993 color coordinate, color temperature, and CRI values of (0.3125, 0.2806), 7108 K and 83.3, respectively.     

White-emitting phosphors Ca6La2Na2(PO4)6F2:Dy and luminescence enhancement through Ce → Dy energy transfer

Ce³⁺ and Dy³⁺ activated fluoro-apatite Ca₆La₂Na₂(PO₄)₆F₂ with chemical formulas Ca₆La_2−xLn_xNa₂(PO₄)₆F₂ (Ln = Ce³⁺, Dy³⁺) were prepared by a solid state reaction technique at high temperature. The vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) and ultraviolet (UV) spectroscopic properties are investigated. The results indicate that Ce³⁺ ions show the lowest 5d excitation band at ∼305 nm and a broad emission band centered at ∼345 nm. Dy³⁺ ions exhibit intense absorption at VUV and UV range. White-emitting under 172 nm excitation is obtained based on two dominant emissions from Dy³⁺ ions centered at 480 and 577 nm. In addition, the energy transfer from Ce³⁺ to Dy³⁺ in the co-doped samples are observed and discussed.     

Photoluminescence properties of emission-tunable Ca9Y(PO4)7: Tm,Dy phosphor for white light emitting diodes

A white-emitting Ca₉Y(PO₄)₇: Tm³⁺, Dy³⁺ phosphor has been successfully prepared by conventional high-temperature solid-state reaction. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and fluorescence spectrophotometer were used to characterize the as-synthesized phosphors. The excitation and emission spectra show that all the Tm³⁺ and Dy³⁺ co-doped Ca₉Y(PO₄)₇ samples can be effectively excited by UV light and then emit blue and yellow light simultaneously. Furthermore, the emission and color coordinate of as-obtained samples pumped by 365 nm are able to be adjusted around white light by varying the doping concentrations of Tm³⁺ and Dy³⁺. So, the as-fabricated single-composition Ca₉Y(PO₄)₇: Tm³⁺, Dy³⁺ phosphor will have a promising application in the area of white light emitting diodes.     

Eu-modification of luminescent hybrid bimodal mesoporous silicas with various anions (NO3, CH3COO,and Cl)

In order to enhance the intensity of luminescent hybrid bimodal mesoporous silica (LHMS), the rare earth Eu³⁺ ion was employed as an enhancer to modify 1,8-naphthalic anhydride (NA) molecules. The modified LHMS were prepared with various anions of europium salts including Cl⁻, NO₃⁻, and CH₃COO⁻. The structure and photoluminescence properties of the obtained samples were characterized by XRD, TEM, N₂-adsorption/desorption, FT-IR, TGA, ICP-OES, and PL measurements. The results showed that the bimodal mesoporous system of BMMs could be preserved after functionalization via grafted Eu³⁺-modified NA molecules onto mesoporous matrix. However, the structure parameters and textural properties of resultant LHMS series were obviously influenced by the anions volume. Meanwhile, the luminescent performances of LHMS series were seriously impacted by both of the binding force between Eu³⁺ and various anions and steric hindrance of the anions, resulting in the intensity of emission peak of obtained LHMS series declining as following order: LHMS-EN (NO₃⁻) > LHMS-EA (CH₃COO⁻) > LHMS-EC (Cl⁻). Finally, the related mechanism was discussed in-depth.     

Optical and field emission characteristics of anodic aluminium oxide/ZnO hybrid nanostructure

Arrays of ZnO nanowires (NWs) were fabricated within the well-distributed pores of anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) template by a simple chemical method. The photoluminescence (PL) and field emission (FE) properties of the AAO/ZnO NWs hybrid structure were investigated in detail. The hybrid nanostructure exhibits interesting PL characteristics. ZnO NWs exhibit UV emission at 378 nm and two prominent blue-green emissions at about 462 and 508 nm. Intense blue emission from the AAO template itself was observed at around 430 nm. Herein, for the first time we report the FE characteristics of the ZnO/AAO hybrid structure to show the influence of the AAO template on the FE property of the hybrid structure. It is found that the turn-on electric field of the vertically grown and aligned ZnO NWs within the pores of AAO template is lower than the entangled unaligned ZnO NWs extracted from the template. Although the AAO template exhibits no FE current but it helps to achieve better FE property of the ZnO NWs through better alignment. The turn-on electric field of aligned NWs was found to be 3 V μm⁻¹ at a current of 0.1 μA. Results indicate that the AAO embedded ZnO NW hybrid structure may find useful applications in luminescent and field emission display devices.     

Synthesis and luminescent properties of organic-inorganic hybrid macroporous materials doped with lanthanide (Eu/Tb) complexes

Visible luminescent macroporous materials covalently bonded with europium and terbium complexes were prepared using polystyrene spheres (PS) as the template. Both of the obtained terbium(Ш) macroporous material (Tb(Ш)-M) and europium(Ш) macroporous material (Eu(Ш)-M) exhibit close-packed spherical porous structure according to the SEM images. Furthermore, their BET surface areas were determined by the N₂ adsorption-desorption isotherms. The two samples show corresponding characteristic green and red luminescence, respectively. Moreover, IR spectra and photoluminescence (PL) properties suggest that the Tb/Eu(Ш) ions were coordinated with organic group grafted on macroporous matrix. The luminescent lifetimes were also measured.     

Tunable color emitting of CaAl2Si2O8: Eu,Tb phosphors for light emitting diodes based on energy transfer

A series of single-phased CaAl₂Si₂O₈: Eu, Tb phosphors have been synthesized at 1400 °C via a solid state reaction. The emission bands of Eu²⁺ and Eu³⁺ were observed in the air-sintered CaAl₂Si₂O₈: Eu phosphor due to the self-reduction effect. Tb³⁺ ions that typically generated green emission were added in CaAl₂Si₂O₈: Eu phosphor for contributing for a wider-range tunable emission. Energy transfer from Eu²⁺ to Tb³⁺ and the modulation of valence distribution of Eu²⁺/Eu³⁺ that contributes to the tunable color emitting were elucidated. More importantly, a white emission can be obtained by controlling the codoped contents of Li⁺ as well as suppressing the self-reduction degree of Eu. The white light emitting with the color coordinate (0.326, 0.261) was obtained, which indicates that CaAl₂Si₂O₈: Eu, Tb is a promising tunable color phosphor for application in ultraviolet light emitting diodes (UV-LEDs).     

Self-activated afterglow luminescence of un-doped Ca2ZrSi4O12 material and explorations of new afterglow phosphors in a rare earth element-doped Ca2ZrSi4O12 system

Un-doped Ca₂ZrSi₄O₁₂ material is prepared using a solid state reaction and it emits intense green afterglow luminescence peaking at 490 nm. The afterglow luminescence can be recorded for about 4800 s (0.32 mcd m⁻²). The thermoluminescence revealed that at least four types of traps existed in the Ca₂ZrSi₄O₁₂ material and the depths of these traps were calculated. The contributions of these traps on the afterglow luminescence were also investigated in detail. Accordingly, a possible afterglow mechanism of Ca₂ZrSi₄O₁₂ was proposed. Moreover, Ca₂ZrSi₄O₁₂ was also doped by rare earth or metal ions for developmental purpose and we arrived at some useful conclusions according to the experimental results.     

Structure and luminescence properties of Mn-doped Zn2SiO4 prepared with extracted mesoporous silica

Zn₂SiO₄:Mn powders were prepared by solid-state reaction using extracted SBA-15 as silica source. The well crystalline willemite Zn₂SiO₄:Mn can be obtained at 800 °C, much lower than the conventional solid-state reaction temperature and lower than using the calcined SBA-15. This can be attributed to the high reactive activity of the extracted SBA-15 due to its high density silanol groups, large surface areas, and non-crystalline structure. Ultraviolet (UV) and vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) excitation spectra reveal the host lattice absorption band around 162 nm and the charge transfer transition band around 245 nm. The Zn₂SiO₄:Mn phosphor exhibits a strong green emission around 527 nm. The Zn₂SiO₄:Mn phosphor with an Mn doping concentration of 0.06, i.e., Zn_1.94Mn_0.06SiO₄, shows the highest relative emission intensity. Upon 147 nm excitation, the luminescence decay time of the green emission of Zn_1.94Mn_0.06SiO₄ around 527 nm is 8.87 ms.     

Morphology control and luminescence properties of YAG:Eu phosphors prepared by spray pyrolysis

Starting from nitrate aqueous solutions with citric acid and polyethylene glycol (PEG) as additives, Y₃Al₅O₁₂:Eu (YAG:Eu) phosphors were prepared by a two-step spray pyrolysis (SP) method. The obtained YAG:Eu phosphor particles have spherical shape, submicron size and smooth surface. The effects of process conditions of the spray pyrolysis on the crystallinity, morphology and luminescence properties of phosphor particles were investigated. The emission intensity of the phosphors increased with increasing of sintering temperature and solution concentration due to the increase of the crystallinity and particles size, respectively. Adequate amount of PEG was necessary for obtaining spherical particles, and the optimum emission intensity could be obtained when the concentration of PEG was 0.10 g/ml in the precursor solution. Compared with the YAG:Eu phosphor prepared by citrate-gel (CG) method with non-spherical morphology, spherical YAG:Eu phosphor particles showed a higher emission intensity.     

Novel synthesis method of YAG: Ce micron-sized powders and its luminescence properties

Micron-sized Ce-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG: Ce³⁺) powders are synthesized successfully by a new method including three processes including solvothermal treatment, precursor preheated and annealing treatment in a mild condition. The phase, morphology and luminescent properties are investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), photoluminescence excitation (PLE) and photoluminescence (PL) spectra respectively. The single-phase sample can be formed after solvothermal treatment at 180 °C for 12 h and annealing at 1200 °C for 4 h. The results obtained by SEM show that the particles with narrow size distribution (∼4 μm) and nice morphology are formed after annealing treatment. This indicates that it has good homogeneity and dispersion. The micron-sized Ce-doped YAG shows broad emission bands in the range of 500–680 nm with the maximum intensity at 577 nm.     

The preparation,characterization and optical properties of Cd2V2O7 and CdCO3 compounds

Cadmium vanadium oxides (Cd₂V₂O₇) and Cadmium carbonates (CdCO₃) were synthesized via a facile hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, infrared spectrometer (IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were employed to characterize the structure, morphology and chemical state of the samples, respectively. The photoluminescence (PL) properties of the as-synthesized Cd₂V₂O₇ and CdCO₃ were measured at room temperature using an excitation wavelength of 325 nm. The Cd₂V₂O₇ shows two visible light emission centers located at 589 and 637 nm, which are supposed to be relevant to local defects in Cd₂V₂O₇. The CdCO₃ shows three emission centers located at 408, 530 and 708 nm, which are supposed to be relevant to the electron transition from the conduction band to valence band and defect related energy level.