Unconventional Low-Temperature Luminescence Kinetics in Micro- and Nanopowders of the Anatase Phase of Titanium Dioxide

Abstract

It is shown that the low-temperature (5 K) decay kinetics of the known luminescence band of titanium dioxide (anatase) in the range of 2.0–2.5 eV has a power-law character. For microcrystals, this behavior is observed in a wide range of delay times from ∼20 ns to 1 ms. The instantaneous luminescence decay time at the end of this range is as long as ∼100 µs. A simple model is proposed to reconstruct the statistics of the lifetime distribution of emitting states using the measured power-law decay curves. Within this model, the observed power-law decay kinetics is associated with radiative recombination mechanisms where a donor-bound electron recombines with an acceptor-bound hole. In crystals with sizes of ∼10 nm, power-law luminescence decay, characteristic of this mechanism, is also observed; however, the luminescence kinetics changes with time, which is explained by the nonradiative recombination of electron—hole pairs via surface states.