Sm3+ induced-SrWO4 phosphor: analysis of photoluminescence and photocatalytic properties with electron density distribution studies

Abstract

In the present study, we designed a spherical shape like Sr1−xSmxWO4 (x = 0.0, 0.01, 0.02, 0.03, 0.04 and 0.05) materials by simple co-precipitation route and evaluated its photoluminescence and photocatalytic properties. The structural and morphological properties of as-prepared materials were studied by powder X-ray diffraction method, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron micrographic images and transmission electron micrographic images. The photoluminescence behavior of Sm3+-doped SrWO4 for visible excitation (405 nm) was examined to analyze its use as white LED. The emission spectra consist of intra 4f transition of Sm3+ such as 4$${\text{G}}_{5/2}\to$$6$${\text{H}}_{5/2}$$ (561 nm), 4$${\text{G}}_{5/2}\to$$6$${\text{H}}_{7/2}$$ (601 nm), 4$${\text{G}}_{5/2}\to$$6$${\text{H}}_{9/2}$$ (642 nm) and 4$${\text{G}}_{5/2}\to$$6$${\text{H}}_{11/2}$$ (711 nm), respectively. Furthermore, the emission wavelength at 601 and 642 nm suggests a strong orange and red emission, which can be applied for the application for near-UV excitation. On the other hand, Sm3+-doped SrWO4 played excellent catalyst towards the photodegradation of Ibuprofen (IBF). The obtained results from the UV-Vis spectroscopy suggested that 3% of Sm3+-doped SrWO4 had high photocatalytic activity compared to other materials. The degradation efficiency of Sr0.97Sm0.03WO4 toward IBF was observed about 97% within 80 min under visible irradiation and it showed good stability by observing the reusability of catalyst. These results suggested that the Sm3+-doped SrWO4 material are suitable candidate for application in photoluminescence and photocatalysis.