Boosting single-band red upconversion luminescence in colloidal NaErF_4 nanocrystals:Effects of doping and inert shell

Single-band red upconversion luminescence(UCL) is vital to in vivo bioimaging as well as "see and treat" biomedicines. Herein, starting with the previously reported β-NaErF4:Tm UCNPs, we examined the effects of both Yb~(3+) doping and inert shell coating on the red-to-green(R/G) ratio for Er3+ based UCL. The doping of Yb~(3+) into the β-NaErF4:Tm3+ core not only enhances the whole UCL intensity, but also raises the R/G ratio by 1.25 times. In addition, the coating of an inert NaYF4 shell, which is usually adopted for the enhancement of UCL intensity, further boosts the R/G value up to as high as 77.92. This work may benefit the potential bioimaging application of single-band red UCL.     

Preparation and Upconversion Luminescence of Y_3Al_5O_(12):Yb~(3+),Er~(3+)Transparent Ceramics

Crystalline Y3Al5O12(YAG) exists in the cubicform,having a garnet structure[1 ,2],and has excellentchemical stability ,good optical and high temperaturecreep chemical stability[3 ~5]. YAG single crystal hasdrawn considerable attention since the early 1960s ,asit isthei mportant crystal forfluorescent andsolid-statelasers . However ,it is hard to prepare large size sam-ples and dope high concentrationions in YAGcrystal .Conversely ,the fabrication of YAGtransparent ceram-ics is relatively…     

Preparation of Mesoporous Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 Mixed Oxide by Hydrothermal Templating Method

Mesoporous Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 mixed oxide with high specific surface area was synthesized under basic condition in the presence of non-ionic surfactant PEG-4000. The effect of synthesis conditions, such as synthesis temperature and the molar ratio of PEG-4000/（[ Ce] ＋ [ Zr] ）, on specific surface area were investigated. The products were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, and nitrogen adsorption-desorption measurements, respectively. The results showed that synthesis temperature and the molar ratio of PEG-4000/（[ Ce] ＋ [ Zr] ） had great influence on specific surface area. Under the optimum synthesis conditions, the prepared Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 mixed oxide presented cubic fluorite-type structure and possessed high surface area of 148.6 m2·g^-1 with wormlike pores.     

Upconversion photoluminescence properties of SrY_2O_4:Er~(3+),Yb~(3+) under 1550 and 980 nm excitation

Er~(3+)/Yb~(3+) co-doped SrY_2O_4 phosphors with high color purity and brightness were successfully synthesized via a solid-state reaction method.Luminescence spectrum studies showed that the main red peaks and the minor green peaks of upconversion emissions were located at approximately 634–681 nm and 543–570 nm,respectively,corresponding to the transitions of ~4F_(9/2)→~4I_(15/2) and ~4S_(3/2)→~4I_(15/2) of Er~(3+) ions.Under the excitation of 980 and 1550 nm lasers,the spectra of all of the samples exhibited similar peak positions but different intensities.When excited by the 980 nm laser,the intensity ratio of red to green emission increased with increasing Yb~(3+) doping concentration and decreased with increasing excitation power.In the case of 1550 nm excitation,the intensity ratio of red to green emission increased with increasing Yb~(3+) doping concentration and excitation power,thereby,improving the color purity of the red emission.The intensity of red emission was considerably stronger under 1550 nm excitation than that under 980 nm excitation.Therefore,the color of the proposed phosphors could be efficiently tuned by tailoring both the Yb~(3+) doping concentration and excitation power.     

Photocatalytic Destruction of Nitrogen Monoxide over La^3＋ and N Co-doped SrTiO3 Powders under Visible Light Irradiation

Lanthanun, and nitrogen co-doped SrTi03 was prepared by a mechanochemical reaction using SrTi03, urea and la203 as the raw materials. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectrometer, trans-mission electron microscopy, and nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherm measurements, lanthanum doping could increase the doping content of nitrogen in the sample. The sample prepared with 0.2 mol% La203, 22 mol% urea and 77.8 mol % SrTi03 by mechanochemical reaction, which has nearly the same nitrogen and lanthanum doping fractions, exhibited high photocatalytic activities. Under the irradiation of light with wavelength larger than 400, and 290 nm, the photocatalytic activity of nitrogen and lanthanum co-doped SrTi03 were 2.6 and 2 times greater than that of pure SrTi03.     

Synthesis and structure of a praseodymium (Ⅲ) complex with carboxylate ligand:A thermal and spectroscopic study

One Pr(Ⅲ) lanthanide ion complex was initially synthesized and characterized by TGA-DSC in air atmosphere, as well as characterized by CHN elemental analysis, defining the stoichiometric ratio as Pr(DMBz)_3. The gaseous products evolved during the thermal decomposition were also monitored in N_2 atmosphere employing TGA/FT-IR system. A crystal structure is obtained by state-of-the-art powder X-rays diffraction methods measured in conventional laboratory equipment and refined by the Rietveld method, which defined it as a monoclinic system of the space group P2_1/C with a polymeric crystal structure, [Pr(DMB_Z)_3]_n. FT-IR theoretical spectrum and time-dependent density functional theory(TD-DFT) were calculated from TGA-DSC and crystalline system data. The experimental and theoretical FT-IR spectra present a high correlation degree when the main stretching bands are compared, while the energy transfer(HOMO — LUMO) in their neighborhoods suggests the main contributions of the light-emitting states.     

Effect of rare earth ions doping on properties of LiFePO4/C cathode material

LiFe0.99RE0.01PO4/C cathode material was synthesized by solid-state reaction method using FeC2O4·2H2O, Li2CO3, NH4H2PO4, RE(NO3)3·nH2O as raw materials and glucose as a carbon source. The doping effects of rare earth ions, such as La3+, Ce3+, Nd3+, on the structure and electrochemical properties of LiFePO4/C cathode material were systematically investigated. The as-prepared samples were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction(XRD), scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and particle size analysis. The electrochemical properties were investigated in terms of constant-current charge/discharge cycling tests. The XRD results showed that the rare earth ions doping did not change the olivine structure of LiFePO4, and all the doped samples were of single-phase with high crystallinity. SEM and particle size analysis results showed that the doping of La3+, Ce3+ and Nd3+led to the decrease of particle size. The electrochemical results exhibited that the doping of La3+ and Ce3+ could improve the high-rate capability of LiFePO4/C cathode material, among which, the material doped with 1% Ce3+ exhibited the optimal electrochemical properties, whose specific discharge capacities could reach 128.9, 119.5 and 104.4 mAh/g at 1C, 2C and 5C rates, respectively.     

Influence of Rare Earth Elements on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Mg-Li Alloys

Mg-Li alloy , which is also called superlight al-loy ,has many advantages ,such as lowdensity ,highstiffness-to-weight ratio , superior strength-to-weightratio ,good deformation ability ,good damping ability ,and high energetic particle penetration resistance[1 ,2].These advantages provide promising applicationsintheaerospace , electronic industry , and military field[3].Mg-Li alloys ,such as LA141 , LA191 ,and LAZ933were developed and have been usedfor components insatellites and aircrafts…     

Effect of Eu~(3+) contents on structure and luminescence properties of Na_3Bi_(2–x)(PO_4)_3:xEu~(3+) and Na_3Bi_(1–x)(PO_4)_2:xEu~(3+) phosphors

A series of Na_3Bi_(2–x)(PO_4)_3:xEu~(3+) and Na_3Bi_(1–x)(PO_4)_2:xEu~(3+) phosphors were successfully synthesized by solid-state method.The structure and luminescence properties were carefully investigated.The excitation spectra presented an obvious excitation band,and the peak was located at 396 nm,which matched well with the popular emissions from near-UV light-emitting diode chips.With the phase of Na_3Bi_(2–x)(PO_4)_3:xEu~(3+) changing to that of Na_3Bi_(1–x)(PO_4)_2:xEu~(3+),the intensity of magnetic dipole transition(~5D_0→F_1) at 598 nm became stronger than that of electric dipole transition(~5D_0→~7F_2) at 621 nm.Under 396 nm excitation,the chromaticity coordinates and the decay curves of the entitled phosphors were also investigated.Based on all experiments without concentration quenching,we could control the luminescence intensity of the material by adjusting the doping amount of the active ions.All results indicated that Na_3Bi_(2–x)(PO_4)_3:xEu~(3+) and Na_3Bi_(1–x)(PO_4)_2:xEu~(3+) phosphors have potential application as red phosphors in near UV chip-based white light emitting diodes.     

A potential red-emitting phosphor Ca_2YTaO_6:Eu~(3+):Luminescence properties,thermal stability and applications for white LEDs

A novel red-emitting phosphor tantalate Ca_2 YTaO_6:Eu~(3+)was synthesized by a solid-state reaction.The purity and surface morphology of the phosphors were characterized.The Ca_2 YTaO_6:Eu~(3+)phosphors show a sharp emission peak at 612 nm under near-ultraviolet(n-UV) at 395 nm because of the ~5 D_0→~7 F_2 transition of Eu3+.The optimal Eu3+doping concentration in Ca2 YTaO_6 is 40 mol% and the critical energy-transfer distance of Eu3+ions was calculated to be 0.9 nm.The emission spectra of Ca_2 YTaO_6:Eu3+from 300 to 480 K were investigated.The thermal-quenching temperature(T_(0.5)) of Ca_2 YTaO_6:Eu~(3+)is above 480 K.The color purity of Ca_2 YTaO_6:40 mol%Eu3+is as high as 99.8%.The luminescence lifetime of Ca_2 YTaO_6:40 mol%Eu~(3+)was also discussed.The high color purity and high thermal stability of Eu~(3+)-doped Ca2 YTaO6 phosphors contribute to its application value in white lightemitting diodes(w-LEDs).     

Single Crystal Growth and Luminescent Properties of Na_5Eu(WO_4)_4

The single crystal growth of stoichiometric host luminescent crystal Na_5Eu(WO_4)_4 has been investigated.Using Na_2WO_4 as a flux,the optimum conditions to grow a pure single crystal by flux-slow-cooling methodhave been determined.A high optical quality single crystal of dimention 4.5 mm has been grown,which is thelargest one as we know so far.The micro-hardness of Na_5Eu(WO_4)_4 single crystal is 3.46×10~3 MPa.Itsrefractive index is 1.81 in white light wavelength region and the specific gravity is 5.65 g/cm~3.The fluorescentand excitation spectra have been determined and the reason of the fluorescent quench of ~5D_2 and ~5D_1 to ~7F_jof Eu~(3 )can be explained as multi-phonon non-radiation transition.     

Nd-doped SnO₂:characterization and its gas sensing property

Nd-doped(2%,5%,10% in mass ratio) SnO2 powders were prepared via a facile hydrothermal procedure.The as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller(BET) specific surface area analyzers.Results showed that the Nd-doped SnO2 samples had more uniform and smaller primary particles compared with the pure sample,the particle size of the doped SnO2 decreased gradually with the increase of Nd,and the specific surface area also increased with the increase of the doped Nd.When used as gas sensing materials,the 5% and 10% Nd-doped sample showed high sensitivity and selectivity to ethanol.Furthermore,the Nd-doped sample showed fast response and recovery time to ethanol gas.This could be attributed to their small diameter,large surface area and Nd element doping.     

Synthesis and crystal structure of [Y(C_5Me_4SiMe_3){μ-O(CH_2)_3CH_3}{N(SiHMe_2)_2}]_2

A dimeric yttrium complex [Y(C5Me4SiMe3){μ-O(CH2)3CH3}{N(SiHMe2)2}]2 (1) was isolated as one of the byproducts from the reaction of Y{N(SiHMe2)3}3(THF)2 with C5Me4HSiMe3 in 1:1.1 molar ratio in toluene at 100 C for 2 d.Complex 1 was characterized by elemental analysis,NMR spectroscopy,FT-IR spectroscopy,and X-ray single crystal structure analysis.X-ray diffractions revealed that com-plex 1 was a symmetric dimer,and the center metal Y3+ was six-coordinated by one nitrogen atom from the amide group,two bridgi...     

Structural studies of BaTiO3：Er3＋ and BaTiO3：Yb3＋ powders synthesized by hydrothermal method

Erbium and ytterbium doped barium titanate nanopowders were prepared using the hydrothermal method. A barium titanate structure doped with rare earth ions manifested new characteristics and improved the field of application of optical devices such as trichromatic tubes, LCD displays, lamps, and infrared lasers. In this work, BaTiO3：Er3＋ and BaTiO3：Yb3＋ were prepared using barium chloride [BaCl2], titanium butoxide [C16H36O4Ti], erbium chloride [ErCl3] and ytterbium chloride [YbCl3] as precursors. Anhydrous methanol was employed as a solvent. Metallic potassium was used to promote solubility in the system and increase the pH to 13. This method yielded the formation of a predominantly cubic structure in both Er3＋ and Yb3＋ doped BaTiO3 powders. Characteristic bondings of BaTiO3 were observed with FT-IR spectroscopy. The predominantly cubic structure was confirmed by X-ray diffraction and micro-Raman analyses. The particle size（～30 nm） was estimated using the Scherrer equation and X-ray diffraction data. The results were presented and discussed.     

Competition between Band Filling and Steric Effect in Ordered Double Perovskites Sr2- x Lax MnMoO6

The ordered double perovskites, Sr2-xLaxMnMoO6, were prepared by sol-gel reaction. Structural, magnetic, and electrical properties were investigated for a series of ordered double perovskites Sr2- x Lax MnMoO6 （0 ≤ x ≤ 1 ）. The compounds have a monoclinic structure （space group P21/n） and the cell volume expands monotonically with La doping. The Tc and the magnetic moment rise and the cusp-like transition temperature below which the magnetic frustration occurs shifts to high temperature as x increases. With La doping, electrical resistivity of Sr2-x LaxMnMoO6 decreases only at low doping levels （x ≤0.2）; while at high doping levels （0.8≤x ≤1）, electrical resistivity tends to increase greatly. The resuits suggest that the competition between band filling effect and steric effect coexists in the whole doping range, and the formation of ferrimagnetic interactions is not simply at the expense of antiferromagnetic interactions.     

Enhancement of secondary emission property of molybdenum cathode co-doped with La_2O_3 and Y_2O_3

La2O3 and Y2O3 co-doped Mo secondary emitters were prepared by three kinds of doping method combined with high temperature plasma sintering.The secondary electron emission property and microstructure of the cathodes were studied.It showed that the cathode prepared by liquid-liquid doping method exhibited the best emission property among all the samples prepared by liquid-solid doping,solid-solid doping and liquid-liquid doping methods due to a uniform distribution of different substances.RE2O3 existed unifo...     

Lattice distortion of holmium doped bismuth ferrite nanofilms

Single-phase multiferroic BiFeO3 and rare-earth metal of holmium （Ho） doped BiFeO3 nanofilms were prepared on Pt （100）/Ti/SiO2/Si wafer via solution-gelation technique. It was suggested that the lattice distortion happened with the lattice parameter of d decreasing after doping rare-earth metal of Ho. Meanwhile, the structure of nanofilms transformed from hexahedron phase to tetragonal phase after doping Ho. The analysis on X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） indicated that the ratio of Fe3~ cations to Fe2＋ cations increased with the increase of binding energy between Fe and O and decrease of that between Bi and O after doping Ho. The present work provided an available way on enhancing multiferroic of BiFeO3 nanofilms.     

Fe-Cr-C Cermet Made by Reaction Sintering

High chromium cast iron is widely used as awear resistance material,in which carbide is bar- likeor strip- like M7C3instead of M3C existing in com-mon cast iron.M7C3is of high hardness and stabilityat high temperature[1— 3] .　　 Reactive sintering has the advantages of lowsintering temperature and short sintering time.Fe-Cr- C cermet was prepared by reactive sintering offerrochromium and graphite and its performance wasstudied.1　Experimental Method　　 The raw materials used were ferroc…     

Photoluminescence and energy transfer in transparent glass-ceramics based on GdF3:RE3+ (RE = Tb,Eu) nanocrystals

In the present work,the transparent oxyfluoride glass-ceramic samples containing GdF_3:RE~(3+)(RE=Tb,Eu) nanocrystals(nGCs) were fabricated via controlled heat-treatment of precursor xerogels prepared using a sol-gel method.The formation of GdF_3 nanocrystalline phase from gadolinium(III) trifluoroacetate was verified based on XRD measurements.The average crystal sizes calculated from Scherrer formula were estimated to～10 nm as well as～6 nm for Tb~(3+)-and Eu~(3+)-doped samples,respectively.The optical behavior of prepared sol-gel samples was evaluated based on photoluminescence excitation(PLE) and emission spectra(PL) as well as luminescence decay analysis.Obtained samples exhibit the ~5D_4→~7F_J(J=6-3,Tb~(3+))and the ~5D_0→~7F_J(J=0-4,Eu~(3+)) emission bands recorded within the visible spectral area under excitation at near-UV(393 nm(Eu~(3+)),351,369,378 nm(Tb~(3+))) as well as middle-UV illumination(273 nm(Gd~(3+))).Additionally,based on recorded decay curves,the luminescence lifetimes(τ_m) for the ~5D_4(Tb3+) and the ~5D_0(Eu~(3+))excited states were also evaluated.In general,recorded luminescence spectra and double-exponential character of decay curves for nGCs indicate a successful migration of Tb~(3+) and Eu~(3+) dopant ions from amorphous silicate framework to lowphonon energy GdF_3 nanocrystal phase.     

Catalytic combustion of toluene on Pt/Al2O3 and Pd/Al2O3 catalysts with CeO2,CeO2-Y2O3 and La2O3 as coatings

CeO₂,La₂O₃,and CeO₂-Y₂O₃ oxides were coated on the surface of spherical granular AI₂O₃(3-5 mm)through impregnation method,and proved as better supports of Pd and Pt catalysts.The influences of rare earth metal doping on the adsorption rates of Pd and Pt ions,as well as the catalytic performance,were investigated.Results show that the H₂PtCl₆·6H₂O adsorption rates of the Al