Garnet-based red emitting phosphors Li6MLa2Nb2O12: Eu (M=Ca,Sr, Ba): Photoluminescence improvement by changing crystal lattice

A series of novel red emitting phosphors Li₆M(La_1−xEu_x)₂Nb₂O₁₂ (M=Ca, Sr, Ba; 0≤x≤0.3) were synthesized by solid state reaction, and their structures and photoluminescence properties were investigated in detail. The excitation spectrum of Li₆M(La_1−xEu_x)₂Nb₂O₁₂ revealed two mainly excitation bands at 393 nm and 464 nm, which match well with the two popular emissions from near-UV and blue LED chips. Upon the 464 nm light excitation, Li₆MLa₂Nb₂O₁₂:Eu³⁺ phosphors exhibit a red emission centered at 608 nm, originated from the ⁵D₀–⁷F₂ transition of Eu³⁺ ions. The Eu³⁺ surrounding crystal lattice environment in the garnet-based host was changed by altering the c sites element with different radii alkaline earth Ba, Sr, and Ca. The evident photoluminescence enhancement was observed in Li₆M(La_1−xEu_x)₂Nb₂O₁₂ phosphors with the decreasing of the c sites ionic radius. The emission intensity of the optimized Li₆Ca(La_0.8Eu_0.2)₂Nb₂O₁₂ (λ_exc=464 nm) phosphor is about two times higher than that of Y₂O₃:Eu³⁺ (λ_exc=467 nm) under blue light excitation. In addition, the quenching mechanism and the relationship between the structure and photoluminescence property were also discussed.