Eu3+:Y2O3 Microspheres and Microcubes: A Supercritical Synthesis and Characterization

A new approach that uses mixed supercritical solvents of water/1-propanol and water/methanol (400 degrees C, 40 MPa) to prepare morphology-controlled precursor materials in a very short reaction time, such as 10 min, followed by calcinations has been developed to form Eu3+:Y2O3 microspheres of 2-3 mu m in diameter or microcubes of 2-3 mu m in side length, respectively. Eu3+:Y2O3 microspheres and microcubes exhibited strong red emission at 610 nm corresponding to D-5(0) -> F-7(2) transition. The highest photoluminescence emission was obtained for the microspheres after calcination at 1000 degrees C for 1 h in air.