Optical properties of Ni2+ in ZrO2 nanocrystals

Abstract Ni 2+ doped ZrO 2 nanocrystals have been prepared by a urea-containing coprecipitation method. The photoluminescence of the doped samples was investigated in detail. Upon excitation at 483 nm, a red emission band at 612 nm was observed originating from the 1 T 2 ( 1 D)– 3 T 2 ( 3 F) transition of Ni 2+ . Effects of both heat-treated temperature and doping concentration on the luminescent properties were also studied. The results reveal that a concentration quenching of the luminescence occurs as the molar ratio of Ni 2+ exceeds the optimum value (1%). However, no thermal quenching was observed probably due to the improved crystallinity of the host lattice resulting from the increase of the calcining temperature.