Submit to Materials Review for Materials Propose a Special Issue

Journal Browser

Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications

Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Related Special Issue
Published Papers

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Advanced and Functional Ceramics and Glasses".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 May 2023) | Viewed by 12204

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Haohong Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201899, China
Interests: transparent ceramics; luminescent glass; PiG; nano-phosphor; crystal structure determination; material calculation and simulation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Luminescent glasses and ceramics are used in many applications, such as illumination, display, telecommunication, medical diagnosis, security checks, lasers, nuclear fusion, and other fields, playing many roles in our daily life, culture and development.

Different from phosphor also called as (opaque or normal) ceramics sometimes in terms of their polycrystalline character, luminescent blocks like glasses, transparent ceramics, and single crystals have excellent transparence and fewer defects, which is important for applications beyond illumination and display. Additionally glasses and ceramics are better than single crystals in terms of time and cost of fabrication as well as uniformity, variety, and high concentration.

The aim of this Special Issue is to focus on the latest developments in luminescent glasses and ceramics including novel structures, luminescent centers and mechanisms, architectures or frameworks of packaged devices (e.g., LD/LED and detectors), techniques, methods, and applications. We are mainly interested in advanced materials with excellent luminescent properties, but others that are useful for material developments such as novel designs for measurement, calculation, and unconventional application are also welcome.

We believe that this collection will present recent interesting and important results that could be useful for young investigators and leading experts in the field. It will also be helpful for people with an interest in novel luminescent materials with advanced properties and potential applications in their projects.

Dr. Haohong Chen
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

luminescent glass and ceramics
process–structure–property relationships
calculation and simulation
advanced manufacturing or measurement technology
innovative luminescent applications

Related Special Issue

Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications (2nd Edition) in Materials (3 articles)

Published Papers (10 papers)

Download All Papers

Research

11 pages, 5935 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Dual-Emission Origins in Bi³⁺-Doped M₂O₃ Sesquioxides (M = Sc, Y, Gd and Lu): A First-Principles Study

by Haonian Bai, Bibo Lou, Mekhrdod S. Kurboniyon, Andrzej Suchocki, Mikhail G. Brik, Jing Wang and Chonggeng Ma

Materials 2024, 17(9), 2039; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17092039 - 26 Apr 2024

Viewed by 301

Abstract

Bi³⁺-doped sesquioxides exhibit dual emissions, marked by distinct Stokes shift and bandwidth, meaning unraveling their underlying origins is particularly intriguing. In this study, we employ first-principles calculations to investigate the luminescence mechanisms within the M₂O₃:Bi³⁺ (M = Sc, Y, Gd, Lu) series, with the goal of addressing the posed inquiry. Our investigation commences with the analysis of the site occupancy and charge state of bismuth ions in the two cationic sites through formation energy calculations. Additionally, we examine the local coordination environments for various excited states of Bi³⁺ dopants, including the ³P_0,1 state and two types of charge transfer states, by evaluating their equilibrium geometric structures. The utilization of the hybrid functional enables us to obtain results of electronic structures and optical properties comparable with experiments. Importantly, the calculated energies for the 6s-6p transitions of Bi³⁺ dopants in the M₂O₃ series align well with the observed dual-emission energies. This alignment challenges the conventional spectroscopic sense that emission bands with large Stokes shifts can be exclusively ascribed to charge transfer transitions. Consequently, the integration of experimental and theoretical approaches emerges as the optimal strategy for designing novel Bi³⁺-doped phosphors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

11 pages, 3748 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Photoluminescent and Scintillating Performance of Eu³⁺-Doped Boroaluminosilicate Glass Scintillators

by Yujia Gong, Lianjie Li, Junyu Chen and Hai Guo

Materials 2023, 16(13), 4711; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16134711 - 29 Jun 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 970

Abstract

In comparison with single crystal scintillators, glass scintillators are more promising materials for their benefits of easy preparation, low cost, controllable size, and large-scale manufacture. The emission of Eu³⁺ ion at 612 nm matches well with the photoelectric detector, making it suitable for the activator in glass scintillators. Therefore, the research on Eu³⁺ doped glass scintillators attract our attention. The photoluminescent and scintillating properties of Eu³⁺-activated boroaluminosilicate glass scintillators prepared by the conventional melt-quenching method were investigated in this work. The glass samples present good internal quantum yield. Under X-ray radiation, the optimal sample reveals high X-ray excited luminesce (XEL), and its integrated intensity of XEL is 22.7% of that of commercial crystal scintillator Bi₄Ge₃O₁₂. Furthermore, the optimal specimen possesses a spatial resolution of 14 lp/mm in X-ray imaging. These results suggest that Eu³⁺-doped boroaluminosilicate glass is expected to be applied in X-ray imaging. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

10 pages, 3694 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fabrication and Luminescent Properties of Highly Transparent Er:Y₂O₃ Ceramics by Hot Pressing Sintering

by Yan Liu, Chengrui Liu, Xianpeng Qin, Lin Gan, Guohong Zhou, Juan Jiang, Tianjin Zhang, Hetuo Chen, Zhengjuan Wang and Shiwei Wang

Materials 2023, 16(13), 4504; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16134504 - 21 Jun 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 867

Abstract

Highly transparent Er:Y₂O₃ ceramics (1–9 at.% Er) were fabricated by hot pressing sintering with ZrO₂ as the sintering additive. The microstructures, transmittance, luminescent properties, thermal conductivity, and mechanical properties of the Er:Y₂O₃ ceramic samples were investigated in detail. The samples all exhibited dense and fine grain microstructures; the average grain sizes were about 0.8 μm. The transmittance levels of the samples with various Er concentrations (2 mm thick) at the wavelengths of 600 and 2700 nm were ~74 and ~83%, respectively. As the Er doping concentration increased from 1 to 9 at.%, the up-conversion luminescence of the samples gradually changed from green to red, with the intensity ratio of red/green light increasing from 0.28 to 2.01. Meanwhile, the down-conversion luminescence properties of the specimens were also studied. When the samples were under 980 nm excitation, the emission bands were detected at 1552, 1573, 1639, and 1661 nm. The thermal conductivity of the samples was found to decrease from 8.72 to 5.81 W/(m·K) with an increase of the Er concentration from 1 to 9 at.%. Moreover, the microhardness and fracture toughness of the samples with 1 at.% Er concentration were ~8.51 GPa and ~1.03 MPa·m^1/2, respectively. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

11 pages, 1919 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study on Local-Structure Symmetrization of K₂XF₆ Crystals Doped with Mn⁴⁺ Ions by First-Principles Calculations

by Mega Novita, Sigit Ristanto, Ernawati Saptaningrum, Slamet Supriyadi, Dian Marlina, Ferdy Semuel Rondonuwu, Alok Singh Chauhan, Benjamin Walker, Kazuyoshi Ogasawara, Michal Piasecki and Mikhail G. Brik

Materials 2023, 16(11), 4046; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16114046 - 29 May 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1302

Abstract

The crystals of Mn⁴⁺-activated fluorides, such as those of the hexafluorometallate family, are widely known for their luminescence properties. The most commonly reported red phosphors are A₂XF₆: Mn⁴⁺ and BXF₆: Mn⁴⁺ fluorides, where A represents alkali metal ions such as Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs; X=Ti, Si, Ge, Zr, Sn, B = Ba and Zn; and X = Si, Ge, Zr, Sn, and Ti. Their performance is heavily influenced by the local structure around dopant ions. Many well-known research organizations have focused their attention on this area in recent years. However, there has been no report on the effect of local structural symmetrization on the luminescence properties of red phosphors. The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of local structural symmetrization on the polytypes of K₂XF₆ crystals, namely O_h-K₂MnF₆, C_3v-K₂MnF₆, O_h-K₂SiF₆, C_3v-K₂SiF₆, D_3d-K₂GeF₆, and C_3v-K₂GeF₆. These crystal formations yielded seven-atom model clusters. Discrete Variational Xα (DV-Xα) and Discrete Variational Multi Electron (DVME) were the first principles methods used to compute the Molecular orbital energies, multiplet energy levels, and Coulomb integrals of these compounds. The multiplet energies of Mn⁴⁺ doped K₂XF₆ crystals were qualitatively reproduced by taking lattice relaxation, Configuration Dependent Correction (CDC), and Correlation Correction (CC) into account. The ⁴A_2g→⁴T_2g (⁴F) and ⁴A_2g→⁴T_1g (⁴F) energies increased when the Mn-F bond length decreased, but the ²E_g → ⁴A_2g energy decreased. Because of the low symmetry, the magnitude of the Coulomb integral became smaller. As a result, the decreasing trend in the R-line energy could be attributed to a decreased electron–electron repulsion. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

10 pages, 4578 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Structural and Scintillation Properties of Ce³⁺:Gd₃Al₃Ga₂O₁₂ Translucent Ceramics Prepared by One-Step Sintering

by Qi You, Hui Lin, Ruijin Hong, Zhaoxia Han, Dawei Zhang and Yuchong Ding

Materials 2023, 16(9), 3373; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16093373 - 25 Apr 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1159

Abstract

Cerium-doped gadolinium aluminum gallium garnet (Ce³⁺:Gd₃Al₃Ga₂O₁₂, Ce³⁺:GAGG) ceramic is a promising scintillation material. In this study, Ce³⁺:Gd₃Al₃Ga₂O₁₂ scintillation ceramics were prepared by the one-step sintering of commercially available Gd₂O₃, Al₂O₃, Ga₂O₃, and CeO₂ powders in a flowing oxygen atmosphere at 1600 °C by solid-phase reaction sintering. For all the Ce³⁺:Gd₃Al₃Ga₂O₁₂ ceramic samples doped with different amounts of Ce³⁺ doping, dense ceramics were obtained. The structure, photoluminescence, and scintillation properties of the Ce³⁺:Gd₃Al₃Ga₂O₁₂ ceramics have been investigated. The average grain size of samples sintered at 1600 °C is about 2 μm. The X-ray excitation luminescence peak is around 560 nm, which is consistent with that of Ce³⁺:Gd₃Al₃Ga₂O₁₂ single crystals, matching well with the computed tomography X-ray detector’s response sensitivity. The light yield is higher compared to the standard reference sample—lutetium yttrium orthosilicate single crystal. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

12 pages, 2352 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Energy Conversion and Transfer in the Luminescence of CeSc₃(BO₃)₄:Cr³⁺ Phosphor

by Lei Chen, Yabing Wu, Qi Liu, Yanguang Guo, Fanghai Liu, Bo Wang and Shizhong Wei

Materials 2023, 16(3), 1231; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16031231 - 31 Jan 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1641

Abstract

Novel near-infrared (NIR) phosphors are in demand for light-emitting diode (LED) devices to extend their suitability for new applications and, in turn, support the sustainable and healthy development of the LED industry. The Cr³⁺ has been used as an activator in the development of new NIR phosphors. However, one main obstacle for the Cr³⁺-activated phosphors is the low luminescence efficiency due to the spin-forbidden d-d transition of Cr³⁺. The rare-earth (RE) huntite minerals that crystallize in the form of REM₃(BO₃)₄ (M = Al, Sc, Cr, Fe, Ga) have a large family of members, including the rare-earth scandium borates of RESc₃(BO₃)₄. Interestingly, in our research, we found that the luminescence efficiency of Cr³⁺ in the CeSc₃(BO₃)₄ host, whose quantum yield was measured at 56%, is several times higher than that in GdSc₃(BO₃)₄, TbSc₃(BO₃)₄, and LuSc₃(BO₃)₄ hosts. Hereby, the energy conversion and transfer in the luminescence of CeSc₃(BO₃)₄:Cr³⁺ phosphor were examined. The Stokes shift of electron energy conversion within the Cr^{3+ 4}T_2g level for the emission at 818 nm and excitation at 625 nm in CeSc₃(BO₃)₄ host was evaluated to be 3775.1 cm⁻¹, and the super-large splitting energy of the ²F_5/2 and ²F₇₂ sub-states of the Ce³⁺ 4f¹ state, about 3000 cm⁻¹, was found in CeSc₃(BO₃)₄ host. The typical electronic thermal vibration peaks were observed in the excitation spectra of CeSc₃(BO₃)₄:Cr³⁺. On this basis, the smallest phonon energy, around 347.7 cm⁻¹, of the CeSc₃(BO₃)₄ host was estimated. Finally, the energy transfer that is responsible for the far higher photoluminescence of Cr³⁺ in CeSc₃(BO₃)₄ than in other hosts was proven through the way of Ce³⁺ emission and Cr³⁺ reabsorption. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

14 pages, 6929 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influence of SHS Precursor Composition on the Properties of Yttria Powders and Optical Ceramics

by Dmitry Permin, Olga Postnikova, Stanislav Balabanov, Alexander Belyaev, Vitaliy Koshkin, Oleg Timofeev and Jiang Li

Materials 2023, 16(1), 260; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16010260 - 27 Dec 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1258

Abstract

This study looked at optimizing the composition of precursors for yttria nanopowder glycine–nitrate self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS). Based on thermodynamic studies, six different precursor compositions were selected, including with excesses of either oxidant or fuel. The powders from the precursors of all selected compositions were highly dispersed and had specific surface areas ranging from 22 to 57 m²/g. They were consolidated by hot pressing (HP) with lithium–fluoride sintering additive and subsequent hot isostatic pressing (HIP). The 1 mm thick HPed ceramics had transmittance in the range of 74.5% to 80.1% @ 1μm, which was limited by optical inhomogeneity due to incomplete evaporation of the sintering additive. Two-stage HIP significantly improves optical homogeneity of the ceramics. It was shown that an excess of oxidizer in the precursor decreases the powders’ agglomeration degree, which forms large pore clusters in the ceramics. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 4340 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Examining the Spectroscopic and Thermographic Qualities of Er³⁺-doped Oxyfluoride Germanotellurite Glasses

by Witold Ryba-Romanowski, Jarosław Komar and Radosław Lisiecki

Materials 2022, 15(21), 7651; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15217651 - 31 Oct 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 983

Abstract

Novel ternary fluoro-germano-tellurite (GTS) glasses doped with Er³⁺ ions with 0.5 mol% and 1.0 mol% were fabricated by a conventional melt and quenching method and investigated using methods of optical spectroscopy. The room-temperature absorption spectrum was recorded and analyzed to determine radiative transition rates, radiative lifetimes, and branching ratios of Er³⁺ luminescence. Decay curves of Er³⁺ luminesccence were recorded and analyzed. Temperature dependences of emission spectra and absorption spectra in the region from RT (room-temperature) up to 675 K were studied in detail. The contribution of competing radiative and nonradiative processes to the relaxation of luminescent levels of Er³⁺ was assessed. Absolute and relative sensitivity were established utilizing the comprehensive model based on thermally coupled ²H_11/2/⁴S_3/2 excited states of erbium. The high quantum efficiency of the first erbium-excited state and value of gain coefficient indicate that GTS:Er glass system can be considered as conceivable NIR (near infrared) laser material as well. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

12 pages, 2807 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Tailoring the Luminescence Properties of Silver Clusters Confined in Faujasite Zeolite through Framework Modification

by Xinling Xv, Song Ye, Ling Pan, Peixuan Lin, Huazhen Liao and Deping Wang

Materials 2022, 15(21), 7431; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15217431 - 23 Oct 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1332

Abstract

Faujasite zeolites with a regular micropore and mesopore structure have been considered desirable scaffolds to stabilize luminescent silver nanoclusters (Ag CLs), while turning of the emission properties of the confined Ag CLs is still under investigation. In this study, the desilicated and dealuminated faujasite zeolites were first prepared to modify the zeolite framework and Si/Al ratio before Ag⁺ loading. With thermal treatment on the thereafter Ag⁺-exchanged zeolites, the Ag CLs formatted inside the D6r cages showed red-shifted emission in the desilicated zeolites and blue-shifted emission in the dealuminated zeolites, so that a tunable emission in the wavelength range of 482–528 nm could be obtained. Meanwhile, the full width at half maximum of the emission spectra is also closely related with framework modification, which monotonously increases with enhancing Si/Al ratio of host zeolite. The XRD, XPS, and spectral measurements indicated that the tunable luminescence properties of Ag CLs result from the controlling of local crystal field and coupling between host lattice and luminescent center. This paper proposes an effective strategy to manipulate the emission properties of Ag CLs confined inside zeolites and may benefit the applications of noble metal clusters activated phosphors in imaging and tunable emission. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures

Graphical abstract

12 pages, 4218 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Tunable Luminescence and Energy Transfer of Sr₃B₂O₆:Ce³⁺, Sm³⁺ Phosphors with Potential Anti-Counterfeiting Applications

by Yiyi Ou, Junyu Wei and Hongbin Liang

Materials 2022, 15(15), 5189; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15155189 - 26 Jul 2022

Viewed by 1578

Abstract

Sm³⁺ and Ce³⁺ singly doped and Sm³⁺ and Ce³⁺ co-doped Sr₃B₂O₆ phosphors are prepared via a high-temperature solid-state reaction method. The crystal structure and phase purity are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses. The Sm³⁺-doped sample displays an emission in the orange-red region, with the strongest emission line at about 648 nm and possessing a good luminescence thermal stability between 78 and 500 K. With the increase in the Sm³⁺ content, the concentration quenching is observed due to the cross-relaxation (CR) processes among the Sm³⁺ ions. Upon 340 nm excitation, the Ce³⁺-doped phosphor presents a broad emission band in the blue region with a maximum at about 420 nm, which overlaps well with the ⁶H_5/2 → ⁶P_3/2 excitation line of Sm³⁺ and implies the possible energy transfer from Ce³⁺ to Sm³⁺. The spectral and decay measurements of the Ce³⁺ and Sm³⁺ co-doped samples are conducted and the Inokuti–Hirayama (I-H) model is adopted to analyze the luminescence decay dynamics of the donor Ce³⁺. Owing to the evident sensitization of the Sm³⁺ by the Ce³⁺ ions, the co-doped samples exhibit color variation under different wavelength excitations, endowing them with potential applications in optical anti-counterfeiting. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glasses and Ceramics for Luminescence Applications)

► Show Figures