Preparation, Characterization, and Spectroscopic Properties of PC/PMMA Doped Blends: Study of the Effect of Rare-Earth Doping on Luminescence, Quenching Rate, and Lifetime Enhancement

Abstract

Optical properties of highly transparent blends formed by bisphenol A polycarbonate (PC) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and doped with either europium(III) thenoyltrifluoroacetone hydrate [Eu(TTA)(3)-hydrate] or terbium(III) acetylacetonate hydrate [Tb(ACAC)(3)-hydrate] were studied. From the absorption/emission spectra (200 to 800 nm), percolation limits of less than 0.4 wt/wt% for Eu and above 0.7 wt/wt% for Tb were found. Lifetimes for 20/80 and 60/40 Tb-doped blends were from 1.0 to 1.5 ms, respectively, about 5 times longer than for a similar blend prepared with Langmuir-Blodgett film. For blends doped with Eu, the lifetimes were from 0.4 to 0.8 ms, almost double that for the pure complex. The results indicated interactions between the PC/PMMA blends and the rare-earth ion complex. Particularly, photoluminescent spectra evidenced the incorporation of the Eu(3+) and Tb(3+) ions into the blend, with quenching observed near 1.0 wt/wt%, except for the 20/80 blend doped with Eu ion, in which luminescence increased to 5 wt/wt %.

Synthesis of LaOF:Eu3+ Nanoparticles with Strong Luminescence Enhanced by Organic Ligands

“…. The broad peak centered at 3464 cm −1 is assigned to O–H stretching vibrations . The –OH functional group, which can lead to luminescence quenching of Eu 3+ , became weaker with the increasing of TTA.…”

Recent advances in lanthanide spectroscopy in Brazil

“…12 The luminescent properties of lanthanide-doped amorphous silicon nanocrystals (Ln¼Er 3 þ , Nd 3 þ , Eu 3 þ and Tb 3 þ ) have been reported by Tessler [151]. Other lanthanide systems based on crystals [152][153][154][155], silica [156], kaolinite [157], PMMA [158], alumina [159,160], and poly-β-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) [161] have been discussed. The preparation of glasses containing lanthanides and their luminescence properties have been discussed in the literature for several different systems and discussed in the frame of a wide range of applications [10,20,26 …”

Sensitization of LnIII (Ln = Eu, Tb, Tm) Ion Luminescence by Functionalized Polycarbonate‐Based Materials and White Light Generation

“…[26] Most often, studies on Ln III luminescent PC materials involve the doping of the PC materials with Eu III ions. [10,11,27] Rubira and co-workers [11] showed that Eu III sensitization can be achieved by doping a blend of PC/PMMA with a Eu III acetylacetonate complex. However, this fast route to luminescent materials often leads to inhomogeneous distribution of the Ln III ions within the matrix.…”