Remarkable differences in photoluminescent properties between LaPO4:Eu one-dimensional nanowires and zero-dimensional nanoparticles

Abstract

Photoluminescent properties of zero-dimensional LaPO4:Eu nanoparticles (NPs) and one-dimensional nanowires (NWs) prepared by the same wet-chemical synthesis technique were studied and compared. The results indicate that in NP Eu3+ occupied only one site, A, while in NW Eu3+ occupied the same site, A and an additional site B due to crystal anisotropy. Furthermore, the electronic transition rate of D15–∑JFJ7 in the NW increased from 14.9to28.9ms−1 compared to the NP, while the nonradiative transition rate of D15–D05 decreased from 24.1to19.7ms−1. The luminescent quantum efficiency thus improved from 30% to 59%. This work demonstrates that a one-dimensional NW may be a more favorable device than a zero-dimensional NP for photoluminescence.