Synthesis of nanocrystalline cubic ZrO_2:Mn~(2+) phosphors: Structural and luminescent properties

摘要

Nanocrystalline cubic zirconia doped with manganese, solid solutions of Zr_(1-x)Mn_xO_(2-x)/2 (x=0, 0.1, 0.2 and 0.4), were prepared by the sol-gel method. The Rietveld refinement of the X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) profile of the samples confirms the stabilization of zirconia in the cubic phase, and the data show the presence of the solid solution as well as oxygen vacancies in the lattice. The crystallite average size of this system is 5.0±2.0 nm, as determined by XRD, which is in close agreement with the particle size determined by high-resolution transmission electronic microscopy (HRTEM). The luminescence properties of these nanophosphors were characterized by their excitation and emission spectra. The photoluminescent spectra exhibited a prominent blue emission band centered at 465 nm, corresponding to the 4T1-6A1 transition of Mn~(2+) under an excitation wavelength of 260 nm.