title: Sacrificial template method for fabrication of submicrometer-sized YPO(4):Eu(3+) hierarchical hollow spheres.
abstract: Large-scale good-quality submicrometer-sized YPO(4):Eu(3+) hollow spheres were synthesized by utilizing the colloidal spheres of Y(OH)CO(3):Eu(3+) as a sacrificial template and NH(4)H(2)PO(4) as a phosphorus source, for the first time. The whole process mainly consists of the hydrothermal reaction and acid erosion. The YPO(4):Eu(3+)@Y(OH)CO(3):Eu(3+) core-shell structures were first obtained after the hydrothermal process. Then, the remaining Y(OH)CO(3):Eu(3+) was removed by selective dissolution in a dilute nitric acid solution. The YPO(4):Eu(3+) hollow spheres were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and photoluminescence (PL). The formation mechanism was also investigated. The obtained YPO(4):Eu(3+) hollow spheres may have potential applications in cell biology, drug release, and diagnosis, due to high chemical stability and luminescence functionality.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Resource Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, 130022 and Graduate University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, PR China.
authors.forename: Lihui
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Guang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.forename: Hongpeng
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: You
authors.forename: Kai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Mei
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Yanhua
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Yuhua
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Yeju
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Hongjie
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang