The development of Ce3+-activated (Gd,Lu)3Al5O12 garnet solid solutions as efficient yellow-emitting phosphors

Ce3+-activated Gd3Al5O12 garnet, effectively stabilized by Lu3+ doping, has been developed for new yellow-emitting phosphors. The powder processing of [(Gd1−xLux)1−yCey]3Al5O12 solid solutions was achieved through precursor synthesis via carbonate precipitation, followed by annealing. The resultant (Gd,Lu)AG:Ce3+ phosphor particles exhibit typical yellow emission at ~570 nm (5d–4f transition of Ce3+) upon blue-light excitation at ~457 nm (the 2F5/2–5d transition of Ce3+). The quenching concentration of Ce3+ was determined to be ~1.0 at% (y = 0.01) and the quenching mechanism was suggested to be driven by exchange interactions. The best luminescent [(Gd0.9Lu0.1)0.99Ce0.01]AG phosphor is comparative to the well-known YAG:Ce3+ in emission intensity but has a substantially red-shifted emission band that is desired for warm-white lighting. The effects of processing temperature (1000–1500 °C) on the spectroscopic properties of the phosphors, especially those of Lu3+/Ce3+, were thoroughly investigated and discussed from the centroid position and crystal field splitting of the Ce3+ 5d energy levels

Effective lattice stabilization of gadolinium aluminate garnet (GdAG) via Lu3+ doping and development of highly efficient (Gd,Lu)AG:Eu3+ red phosphors

The metastable garnet lattice of Gd3Al5O12 is stabilized by doping with smaller Lu3+, which then allows an effective incorporation of larger Eu3+ activators. The [(Gd1−xLux)1−yEuy]3Al5O12 (x = 0.1–0.5, y = 0.01–0.09) garnet solid solutions, calcined from their precursors synthesized via carbonate coprecipitation, exhibit strong luminescence at 591 nm (the 5D0 → 7F1 magnetic dipole transition of Eu3+) upon UV excitation into the charge transfer band (CTB) at ~239 nm, with CIE chromaticity coordinates of x = 0.620 and y = 0.380 (orange-red). The quenching concentration of Eu3+ was estimated at ~5 at.% (y = 0.05), and the quenching was attributed to exchange interactions. Partial replacement of Gd3+ with Lu3+ up to 50 at.% (x = 0.5) while keeping Eu3+ at the optimal content of 5 at.% does not significantly alter the peak positions of the CTB and 5D0 → 7F1 emission bands but slightly weakens both bands owing to the higher electronegativity of Lu3+. The effects of processing temperature (1000–1500 °C) and Lu/Eu contents on the intensity, quantum efficiency, lifetime and asymmetry factor of luminescence were thoroughly investigated. The [(Gd0.7Lu0.3)0.95Eu0.05]3Al5O12 phosphor processed at 1500 °C exhibits a high internal quantum efficiency of ~83.2% under 239 nm excitation, which, in combination with the high theoretical density, favors its use as a new type of photoluminescent and scintillation material