title: Luminescence properties of europium ions-doped yttrium silicate (Y2SiO5:Eu3+) nanocrystalline phosphors: effect of Eu3+ ion concentration and thermal annealing.
abstract: The trivalent europium ions-doped yttrium silicate (Y2SiO5:Eu3+) nanocrystalline phosphors were synthesized via a sol-gel method, followed by post thermal annealing. The effects of thermal annealing temperature and doping concentration on the structural and luminescent properties of Y2SiO5:Eu3+ nanocrystalline phosphors were systematically investigated by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and photoluminescence measurements. The nanocrystalline phosphors with a high crystallinity were obtained at an annealing temperature of 1300 degrees C. The luminescent spectra were affected strongly by the Eu3+ ion concentration and annealing temperature. The Eu3+ ion concentration was optimized at 5 mol%, exhibiting excellent red emission (-612 nm) corresponding to the 5D0 --> 7F2 transition of Eu3+ ions at the excitation wavelengths of 262 and 396 nm. For the optimized Y2SiO5:Eu3+ nanocrystalline phosphors, the lifetimes were also estimated from the decay curves under the ultraviolet excitations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Electronics and Radio Engineering, Institute for Laser Engineering, Kyung Hee University, 1 Seocheon-dong, Giheung-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do 446-701, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Yeong Hwan
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Ko
authors.forename: Soo Hyun
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Jae Su
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Yu
mesh_terms: D005063:Europium / Q000737:chemistry*; D006244:Hardness; D006361:Heating; D007477:Ions; D008163:Luminescent Measurements / Q000379:methods*; D008422:Materials Testing; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D010316:Particle Size; D017640:Silicates / Q000737:chemistry*; D015019:Yttrium / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D007477:Ions; D017640:Silicates; C028301:yttrium silicate; D005063:Europium; D015019:Yttrium