Ag nanoaggregates as efficient broadband sensitizers for Tb3+ ions in silica-zirconia ion-exchanged sol-gel glasses and glass-ceramicsShow others and affiliations
2018 (English)In: Optical materials (Amsterdam), ISSN 0925-3467, E-ISSN 1873-1252, Vol. 84, p. 668-674Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
In this paper we report the study of down-shifting silica-zirconia glass and glass-ceramic films doped by Tb3+ ions and Ag nanoaggregates, which combine the typical spectral properties of the rare-earth-ions with the broadband sensitizing effect of the metal nanostructures. Na-Tb co-doped silica-zirconia samples were obtained by a modified sol-gel route. Dip-coating deposition followed by annealing for solvent evaporation and matrix densification were repeated several times, obtaining a homogeneous crack-free film. A final treatment at 700 °C or 1000 °C was performed to control the nanoscale structural properties of the samples, resulting respectively in a glass (G) or a glass-ceramic (GC), where tetragonal zirconia nanocrystals are surrounded by an amorphous silica matrix. Ag introduction was then achieved by ion-exchange in a molten salt bath, followed by annealing in air to control the migration and aggregation of the metal ions. The comparison of the structural, compositional and optical properties are presented for G and GC samples, providing evidence of highly efficient photoluminescence enhancement in both systems, slightly better in G than in GC samples, with a remarkable increase of the green Tb3+ PL emission at 330 nm excitation: 12 times for G and 8 times for GC samples. Furthermore, after Ag-exchange, the shape of Tb3+ excitation resembles the one of Ag ions/nanoaggregates, with a broad significant absorption in the whole UV-blue spectral region. This broadband enhanced downshifting could find potential applications in lighting devices and in PV solar cells.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2018. Vol. 84, p. 668-674
Keywords [en]
Sol-gel, Ag nanoaggregates, Broadband sensitizers, Rare earths, Downshifting
National Category
Other Physics Topics
Research subject
Experimental Physics
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:ltu:diva-70344DOI: 10.1016/j.optmat.2018.07.074ISI: 000446145200099Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85050857389OAI: oai:DiVA.org:ltu-70344DiVA, id: diva2:1238187
Note
Validerad;2018;Nivå 2;2018-08-13 (andbra)
2018-08-132018-08-132021-03-31Bibliographically approved