Fabrication of transparent cerium-doped lutetium aluminum garnet ceramics by co-precipitation routes

Nanosized, highly sinterable Ce-doped lutetium aluminum garnet (LuAG:Ce) powders were synthesized by the urea homogeneous co-precipitation routes. LuAG:Ce transparent ceramics with an average grain size of about 6 mu m were successfully fabricated at 1800 degrees C for 10 h by vacuum sintering without sintering aids using the powders calcined at 1000 degrees C for 2 h. The transmittance in the visible light region reaches 65%. The radioluminescence spectrum displays a broad band located at 480-650 nm consisting of two emissions due to the transitions from the lowest 5d excited state to the 4f ground state of Ce3+, which is consistent with that of LuAG:Ce single crystal and well coupled with the silicon photodiodes.