A potential temperature sensing material: Studies of structure and temperature-sensitive photoluminescent properties of Nb5+, Sm3+ doped YTaO4

Non-contact luminescence temperature measurement technology shows a broad application prospect in medical, high-temperature environment and other fields, which has attracted people's attention for its high-precision, real-time response and so on. In this work, Nb5+, Sm3+ single-doped and co-doped YTaO4 phosphor was designed. YTaO4 with M-type and M'-type structures can be obtained by adjusting the synthesis conditions. The structure and composition of the samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The photoluminescent properties of NbO43- group and Sm3+ ions in M-type and M'-type YTaO4 matrix were studied. Due to the different thermal responses of Nb5+ and Sm3+ ions, the fluorescence intensity ratio between them can be used as temperature detecting signal. In the range of 77-500 K, the maximum relative sensitivity of the YTaO4: Nb5+, Sm3+ reaches 1.15 %K-1 at 450 K, indicating that the Nb5+ and Sm3+ co-doped M-type YTaO4 phosphors can be used as optical temperature sensor. This research may provide guidance for the design of other rare earth doped luminescent materials for temperature detection.

Automated summary

Non-contact luminescence temperature measurement technology has great application potential in various fields. By studying the photoluminescent properties of Nb5+ and Sm3+ ions, it was found that the fluorescence intensity ratio between them can be used as a temperature detecting signal. The co-doped YTaO4 phosphors may be used as optical temperature sensors.