Enhanced luminescence properties and energy transfer in Ce3+ and Tb3+ co-doped NaCaBO3 phosphor

Abstract A series of color-tunable NaCaBO 3 : Ce 3+ , Tb 3+ phosphors have been synthesized on the basis of efficient Ce 3+ →Tb 3+ energy transfer. The photoluminescence emission and excitation spectra, the lifetime, and the effect of Tb 3+ concentration are investigated in detail. The enhanced photoluminescence of Tb 3+ with sharp emission lines could be obtained by the broad excitation band from the allowed 4 f –5 d absorption of Ce 3+ ions. The intensity ratio of blue emission from Ce 3+ and green emission from Tb 3+ can be tuned by adjusting their concentrations. The energy transfer from Ce 3+ to Tb 3+ in NaCaBO 3 was found to be an electric dipole–quadrupole interaction.