Tailoring photoluminescence properties of aluminum hydroxide nanostructures with carbazole derivatives

Abstract

In this report, we synthesize greenish-blue- and yellow-emitting aluminum oxide nanostructures with tailored absorption and PL properties by adding 1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazol-4-one. The luminescent nanostructures are synthesized via a single-step high-temperature thermal-decomposition reaction using aluminum acetate precursors in a 1-octadecene solution. We observed that the addition of 1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazol-4-one to the reaction mixture significantly affects the PL properties of the aluminum hydroxide nanostructure. Characteristic PL peaks are observed at 406 and 483 nm, which are attributed to the emission from O- and C-related defect centers, respectively. When the reaction is conducted with 1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazol-4-one, a red-shift of the emission spectra of aluminum hydroxide is observed, with greenish-blue PL under ultraviolet excitation. Additionally, when the reaction temperature increases, the PL is further red-shifted, resulting in a yellow-emitting aluminum hydroxide nanostructure. Structural characterization is conducted to investigate the optical properties of the aluminum hydroxide nanostructures synthesized under different reaction conditions. Our method allows the PL properties of aluminum hydroxide nanostructures to be tailored.