Luminescence spectroscopy of excitons and antisite defects in Lu3Al5O12 single crystals and single-crystal films

The nature of the intrinsic luminescence of the lutetium aluminum garnet Lu3Al5O12 (LuAG) has been analyzed on the basis of time-resolved spectral kinetic investigations upon excitation of two model objects, LuAG single crystals and single-crystal films, by pulsed X-ray and synchrotron radiations. Due to the differences in the mechanisms and methods of crystallization, these objects are characterized by significantly different concentrations of Lu-Al antisite defects. The energy structure of luminescence centers in LuAG single crystals (self-trapped excitons (STEs), excitons localized near antisite defects, and Lu-Al antisite defects) has been established. For single-crystal LuAG films, grown by liquid-phase epitaxy from a Pb-containing flux, the energy parameters of the following luminescence centers have been determined: STEs in regular (unperturbed by the presence of antisite defects) sites of the garnet lattice and excitons localized near Pb2+ ions. The structure of the luminescence centers, related to the background emission of impurity Pb2+ ions, has also been established in the UV and visible ranges. It is suggested that, in contrast to the two-halide hole self-trapping, a self-trapped state similar to STEs in simple oxides (Al2O3, Y2O3) is formed in LuAG; this state is formed by self-trapped holes in the form of singly charged O- ions and electrons localized at excited levels of Lu3+ cations.