Structure and photoluminescence properties of Ce3+ doped Ba7(BO3)3(SiO4)Br phosphors with complex anion groups

Ba7(BO3)3(SiO4)Br:Ce3+ phosphors were synthesized by traditional high temperature solid-state reaction. Ce3+ ions probably occupied three types of lattice sites, moreover, emitted an unsymmetric wide band which consisted of 390, 420 and 446 nm bands. The emission band of Ba7-x(BO3)3(SiO4)Br:xCe3+ phosphors showed red shift with the increase of Ce3+ concentration, which may be attributed to the fact that more Ce3+ enter the lattice sites and shorten the distance between adjacent cerium ions. Due to energy transfer of excited Ce3+, Ba7(BO3)3(SiO4)Br: Ce3+ phosphors showed obvious fluorescence quenching effect. The average luminescence lifetimes of Ba6.99(BO3)3(SiO4)Br:0.01Ce3+ phosphors were calculated to be 28.41, 28.68 and 29.23 for 390, 420 and 446 nm emission bands, respectively. The activation energy of thermal quenching for Ba6.99(BO3)3(SiO4)Br:0.01Ce3+ was determined to be 0.344 eV from the temperature-dependent photoluminescence spectra, which indicated the phosphor had possessed a good thermal stability. The result provides new way to design suitable phosphors for solid-state white lighting.

Automated summary

Ba7(BO3)3(SiO4)Br:Ce3+ phosphors were synthesized by high temperature solid-state reaction, and the effects of Ce3+ ion concentration and lattice sites on the emission properties were investigated. The phosphors exhibited good thermal stability, providing a new approach for designing phosphors for solid-state white lighting.