Synthesis and photoluminescence of Eu3+-doped ZnO–Ga2O3–SiO2 nano-glass-ceramics

Abstract Transparent rare-earth Eu3+-doped ZnO–Ga2O3–SiO2 nano-glass-ceramics were obtained by a sol–gel method. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy were used to characterize the as-synthesized materials. Results showed that ZnGa2O4 nanocrystals with the size of 5 nm were precipitated from ZnO–Ga2O3–SiO2 system and dispersed in the SiO2-based glass when the heat-treatment temperature was up to 800 °C. Photoluminescence characterization of Eu3+-doped ZnO–Ga2O3–SiO2 nano-glass-ceramics was carried out and the results show that the as-synthesized material display intense emission at 615 nm belonging to 5D0 → 7F2 transition.