Optical properties and Surface analysis of lithium incorporated Y2O3:Eu3+ ceramic phosphors

The influence of lithium doping concentration on the crystallization, the surface morphology, and the luminescent properties of Y1.92O3:Eu0.08 ceramic phosphors were investigated. The crystallinity, the surface morphology, and the photoluminescence (PL) of ceramics depended highly on the Li-doping concentrations. The relationship between the crystalline and morphological structures and the luminescent properties was studied, and Li-doping was found to affect not only the enhanced crystallinity but also the luminescent brightness of Y1.92O3:Eu0.08 ceramics. In particular, the incorporation of Li+ ion into the Y2O3 lattice could induce remarkable increase in the PL intensity. The strongest emission intensity was observed with Y1.68Li0.24O3-δ:Eu0.08 ceramics whose brightness was increased by a factor of 6.5 in comparison with that of Y1.92O3:Eu0.08 ceramics.