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Hydrothermal synthesis, phase evolution, and optical properties of Eu3+-doped KF-YF3 system materials

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Abstract

Through a polyethylene-glycol-assisted hydrothermal method, a series of potassium fluoride (KF)-Yttrium (III) fluoride (YF3) system materials have been synthesized. By controlling the reactant ratios of KF: rare earth ions (RE3+), the hydrothermal temperatures, and the pH values of the prepared solutions, the final products can evolve among the orthorhombic phase of YF3 and/or the tetragonal phase of potassium triyttrium decafluoride (KY3F10) and/or the cubic phase of potassium yttrium tetrafluoride (KYF4). The final products are characterized by the x-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns, the field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) images, the energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) patterns, the photoluminescence (PL) spectra, and the luminescent dynamic decay curves. The XRD patterns of the samples suggest the phase evolution of the final products. The FE-SEM images and the EDS patterns prove that. Europium ion (Eu3+) acting as a probe, its PL spectra and the luminescent decay curves all put together prove the phase evolution of the final products. The research can be extended to study the other KF-REF3 system materials.

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Acknowledgment

This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (No. 2010-0022540) and also this research was supported by NCRC (National Core Research Center) program through the National Research Foundation of Korea funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (2010-0001-226). The first author thanks for the financial support of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 61205217), the project of Young Excellent Doctor (JZB11001) of Jinggangshan University, and the project of the Key Subject of Atomic and Molecular Physics supported by Jiangxi Province (2011-1015), China.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Mathematics and Physics, Jinggangshan University, Ji’an, 343009, China

    Chunyan Cao

  2. Department of Physics, Pukyong National University, Busan, 608-737, Korea

    Hyun Kyoung Yang, Byung Kee Moon, Byung Chun Choi & Jung Hyun Jeong

  3. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Pusan National University, Busan, 609-735, Korea

    Kwang Ho Kim

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  1. Chunyan Cao
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Correspondence to Jung Hyun Jeong.

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Cao, C., Kyoung Yang, H., Kee Moon, B. et al. Hydrothermal synthesis, phase evolution, and optical properties of Eu3+-doped KF-YF3 system materials. Journal of Materials Research 27, 2988–2995 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2012.331

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