Photoluminescence Properties of Cyan-Emitting Lu3GaxAl5−xO12: Ce3+ Garnet Phosphors Synthesized in Nonreducing Atmosphere and at Different Temperature for High Quality w-LEDs

Abstract

The existence of so-called blue-green cavities in the luminescence spectrum has been a hindrance to the improvement in the performance of traditional phosphor-converted white light emitting diodes. The commercial phosphors synthesized in reducing atmospheres can also cause problems such as equipment complexity, increased cost, and environmental pollution. Herein, a series of cyan-emitting Lu3GaxAl5−xO12: Ce3+ (x = 0, 1, 2, 3, 4) garnet phosphors were synthesized by a traditional solid-state reaction in a nonreducing atmosphere at different temperatures. The crystal structure, grain morphology, optical properties, and thermal quenching behavior were used to analyze the optical properties of the as-prepared phosphors. The luminescence intensity of samples is affected by the synthesis temperature and energy gap between the conduction band and the lowest energy of the 5d excited state of the host lattice. With the substitution of Al3+ by Ga3+, the regularity of the excitation and emission band movement is determined by the combined effects of crystal field splitting (CFS) and the nephelauxetic effect (NE). The temperature dependence of luminescence was studied. The thermal quenching mechanism was clarified by the thermal ionization model. Finally, by employing Lu2.94Ga2Al3O12: Ce3+0.06 as a cyan component, a w-LED with a high color rendering index of 93.2 and low correlation color temperature of 3880 K based on a blue chip and commercial red phosphors were fabricated in order to explore its possible application in high quality w-LED.