Synthesis and photoluminescent properties of Sm3+-doped SnO2 nanoparticles

Abstract

SnO2 ceramic nanoparticles homogeneously doped with Sm 3+ ions were synthesized via a sol-gel method, followed by drying and annealing in air. Xray diffractometry, FT-IR spectrometry and transmission electron microscopy were used to characterize the nanoparticulate samples. After annealing, both doped and undoped SnO2 nanopowders were shown to adopt the rutile tetragonal crystal form and to exhibit characteristic Sn-O-Sn vibrations. The average particle size was found to be in the region of 23-28 nm. Photoluminescence analysis at room temperature demonstrated strong enhancement of the visible emission from Sm 3+ , via energy transfer from the SnO2 host matrix to the dopant. The maximum emission efficiency was observed for a concentration of 1.5 atom % Sm 3+ .

Nanoscale insights into doping behavior, particle size and surface effects in trivalent metal doped SnO2

“…In such case, the association of the lanthanide with a defect in the nearest neighbour position remove the inversion symmetry around the dopant and thus the electric dipole transitions become allowed and their intensity dominate the spectra. For Sm 42, 43 , Tb 44 or Dy 45, 46 doped SnO 2 , the reported emission shapes deviate from the ones expected for an inversion local symmetry 47–49 , and thus, the isolated substitutional doping route remain uncertain.…”

Lanthanide luminescence sensitization via SnO2 nanoparticle host energy transfer

“…The sol-gel synthesis and characterization of the nanoparticulate samples were carried out exactly as previously reported [4] for pure and Sm 3+ -doped SnO 2 . Briefly, tin (IV) chloride pentahydrate and 0 to 3 mol % of LnCl 3 (Ln = Sm, Eu, Tb, Ho) were dissolved in methanol and hydrolyzed by aqueous ammonia, forming gels from which Ln-doped SnO 2 nanoparticles were obtained.…”

“…Briefly, tin (IV) chloride pentahydrate and 0 to 3 mol % of LnCl 3 (Ln = Sm, Eu, Tb, Ho) were dissolved in methanol and hydrolyzed by aqueous ammonia, forming gels from which Ln-doped SnO 2 nanoparticles were obtained. After washing, drying and annealing at 673 K, the nanocrystallite diameters were determined by powder X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis [4] to be in the range 21 -28 nm.…”

“…However, in Ln-doped wide-band-gap nanosemiconductors (NSCs) such as TiO 2 [1][2][3], SnO 2 [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12], ZnO [13][14][15], etc., lattice defects can give rise to simple configurational mixing caused by the noncentrosymmetric crystal fields, permitting an opposite-parity excited configuration. In addition, because of the larger surface-to-volume ratios in the host NSCs, a range of other physical and chemical properties differ significantly from those in the bulk.…”

“…The synthesis and photonic properties of sol-gel derived SnO 2 doped with Ln 3+ ions were recently reviewed [16]. Amongst this previous work, we have previously reported the observation of intense, well-resolved emission lines from Sm 3+ by host sensitization in Sm 3+ -doped SnO 2 nanoparticles [4]. A more detailed discussion of the host-sensitization mechanism is presented here for a wider range of lanthanides (Sm 3+ , Eu 3+ , Tb 3+ , Ho 3+ ) doped in nanocrystalline SnO 2 .…”