Photoluminescence of Eu3+-doped glasses with Cu2+ impurities

Glasses activated with Eu3+ ions are attractive as luminescent materials for various photonic applications. Co-doping with copper has been proposed for enhancing material optical properties, but the quenching effect of Cu2+ impurities on Eu3+ emission in glass remains largely unexplored. In this work, Eu2O3/CuO-containing barium-phosphate glasses have been prepared by the melt-quench method, and the Eu3+ photoluminescence (PL) quenching resulting from Eu3+ -> Cu2+ energy transfer was evaluated. Optical absorption spectroscopy showed that with the increase in CuO concentration the Cu2+ absorption band resonant with Eu3+ emission (e.g. D-3(0) -> F-7(2) transition around 615 nm) developed steadily. As a result, Eu3+ PL was progressively quenched. Evaluation of the quenching constants as a function of temperature in the 298-673 K range showed differences basically within experimental error, consistent with a resonant transfer and lack of phonon-assisted processes. Moreover, analysis of the Eu3+ emission decay dynamics revealed a strong correlation between the decay rates and Cu2+ impurity levels. Results imply that for practical applications the levels of Cu2+ in Eu3+/Cu+-activated glasses should be reduced if not removed as these will significantly limit device efficiency. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.