Chapter 6 - Lanthanide and Transition Metal Ion Doped Materials for Luminescence Temperature Sensing

Abstract

This chapter describes the physical phenomena that govern the luminescence of lanthanide and transition metal ion doped materials and highlights their characteristics relevant to luminescence thermometry. Mechanisms behind down-shifting, up-converting, scintillating, and quantum cutting are depicted, and the most relevant phosphors mentioned. Common routes for preparation of single crystals, powders, thin films, and coatings of these materials are concisely presented in a separate section. Detail is given about luminescence thermometry using the intensity ratio of emissions from thermally coupled excited states of lanthanide ions, including a discussion of the energy levels of each lanthanide ion, emission colors, temperature measurement ranges, and measurement sensitivities. Temperature readings from emission decay times and rise times, and emission intensity ratios from doubly activated materials (both lanthanide and transition ion doped), are presented. The chapter also contains an extensive overview of the literature (with 117 references) on lanthanide and transition metal ion doped materials, for which luminescence thermometry has been demonstrated.