Effects of crystallization and dopant concentration on the emission behavior of TiO2:Eu nanophosphors

Abstract

Uniform, spherical-shaped TiO2:Eu nanoparticles with different doping concentrations have been synthesized through controlled hydrolysis of titanium tetrabutoxide under appropriate pH and temperature in the presence of EuCl3·6H2O. Through air annealing at 500°C for 2 h, the amorphous, as-grown nanoparticles could be converted to a pure anatase phase. The morphology, structural, and optical properties of the annealed nanostructures were studied using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy [EDS], and UV-Visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy techniques. Optoelectronic behaviors of the nanostructures were studied using micro-Raman and photoluminescence [PL] spectroscopies at room temperature. EDS results confirmed a systematic increase of Eu content in the as-prepared samples with the increase of nominal europium content in the reaction solution. With the increasing dopant concentration, crystallinity and crystallite size of the titania particles decreased gradually. Incorporation of europium in the titania particles induced a structural deformation and a blueshift of their absorption edge. While the room-temperature PL emission of the as-grown samples is dominated by the 5D0 - 7Fj transition of Eu+3 ions, the emission intensity reduced drastically after thermal annealing due to outwards segregation of dopant ions.

Enhanced Photoelectrocatalytic Water Splitting at Hierarchical Gd3+:TiO2Nanostructures through Amplifying Light Reception and Surface States Passivation

“…This peak broadening nature was caused due to the micro lattice strain at (101) lattice by Gd 3+ doping carriers which restrain the further growth of TiO 2 crystallites. 35,36 This fact suggested the successful incorporation of rare earth ions into the anatase lattice. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of pristine and Gd doped TiO 2 are presented in Fig.…”

Surface plasmon resonance in nanostructured Ag incorporated ZnS films

“…When silver is incorporated into the ZnS lattice, a strain may be induced into the system which can alter the lattice periodicity and decreases the crystallinity. 23 In the present study, the substrate temperature is maintained at a fixed value at 200 0 C for different Ag incorporation concentrations. So the decrease in crystallinity can be related to increase in Ag incorporation.…”

Structural, Morphological and Optical Study of Bismuth and Zinc Co-Doped Yttrium Oxide Prepared by Solvothermal and Wet Chemical Method

“…It also shows that traces mixed phases of Y 2 O 3 -, ZnO-, β-Bi 2 O 3 is present in this sample. Other doped samples with 0.5 wt% and 1 wt% as doping concentration show amorphous nature due to the distortion produced in the lattice [13]. It also has been observed that crystallite size decreases with dopant concentration [12].…”