Photoluminescence properties and energy transfer of a novel bluish-green tunable KSrY(PO4)2:Ce3+, Tb3+ phosphor

Abstract A series of single-phased emission Ce 3+ /Tb 3+ -coactivated KSrY(PO 4 ) 2 (KSYP) phosphors were synthesized by solid-state reaction. The crystal structures, photoluminescence properties, fluorescence lifetimes and energy transfer of KSYP:Ce 3+ , Tb 3+ were systematically investigated in detail. Wavelength-tunable bluish-green light could be realized by coupling the emission bands centered at 401 and 543 nm ascribed to the contribution from Ce 3+ and Tb 3+ , respectively. Intense green emission was realized in the KSrY 0.59 (PO 4 ) 2 :0.01 mol Ce 3+ , 0.40 mol Tb 3+ phosphors on the basis of the high efficiency energy transfer from Ce 3+ to Tb 3+ with an efficiency of over 68%. The energy transfer mechanism from Ce 3+ to Tb 3+ in the KSYP host was ascribed to the exchange interaction. These results indicated that the KSYP:Ce 3+ , Tb 3+ phosphors have potential applications in the field of lighting and display due to their effective excitation in the ultraviolet range.