Abstract
We have performed a systematic structural, vibrational, and optical study of LaF3:Eu3+ nanoparticles capped with oleic acid (OA) or OA and sensitized with thenoyltrifluoroacetone (TTA). The average nanoparticle size was around 11 nm for all Eu3+ concentrations. A shift in the energy of the Raman active modes is observed with increasing Eu3+ concentration that can be accounted for by a decrease in the unit cell volume. Sensitization by TTA was observed and resulted in an 18 000% increase in the photoluminescence (PL) intensity for TTA/OA capped LaF3:Eu3+ nanoparticles when compared with OA capped LaF3:Eu3+ nanoparticles. There is also a large increase in the D50→F72 PL intensity, when normalized to the D50→F71 PL magnetic dipole transition intensity, for TTA/OA capped nanoparticles. The changes in the PL intensities, PL lifetimes, Judd–Ofelt parameters, stimulated emission cross sections, and quantum efficiencies, for OA and TTA/OA capped LaF3:Eu3+ nanoparticles with increasing Eu3+ concentration can be accounted for by a model that separates the Eu3+ sites into sites near the surface and Eu3+ sites in the core as well as nonradiative recombination sites near the surface. The large increase in PL intensity due to TTA sensitization means that TTA capped LaF3:Eu3+ can potentially be used for applications that include optical amplification.
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