Glycols functionalized fluorescent Eu2O3 nanoparticles: Functionalization effect on the structural and optical properties

Herein, we report the facile synthesis and detailed characterization of glycols-functionalized Europium oxide (Eu2O3) nanoparticles prepared by simple solution process. For the functionalization of Eu2O3 nanoparticles, four glycols, namely ethylene glycol (EG), diethylene glycol (DEG), triethylene glycol (TEG) and tetraethylene glycol (TeEG) were used. All the synthesized glycols-functionalized Eu2O3 nanoparticles were characterized in detail in terms of their morphological, structural, compositional and optical properties. From the detailed characterizations, it was observed that the variation of glycols allow the modulation of water solubility and size control (DLS data: 110 nm for EG, 80 nm for DEG, 135 nm for TEG and 150 nm for TeEG) of synthesized Eu2O3 nanoparticles. The regular changes in the chain length of glycol have provided a direct evidence to investigate the effect on the optical and luminescent properties of synthesized Eu2O3 nanoparticles. The current approach presents a simple and facile method to prepare fluorescent Eu2O3 nanoparticles at ambient reaction conditions. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.