Sb3+/Mn2+ co-doped tunable white emitting borosilicate glasses for LEDs

Luminescent properties of Sb3+/Mn2+ co-doped borosilicate glasses containing no rare earth ions were systematically investigated through absorption, excitation, emission spectra, and decay curves. Upon 250-340 nm light excitation, the glasses exhibit broad blue emission at 400 nm (Sb3+) and red emission at 615 nm (Mn2+). The varied emitted color from blue through white and eventually to red can be obtained by properly tuning the content of Mn2+ ions due to energy transfer from Sb3+ to Mn2+. Our investigation shows that Sb3+/Mn2+ co-doped glasses may provide a new platform to design and fabricate luminescent materials for UV LED chips in the future. (C) 2012 Optical Society of America