An efficient, thermally stable cerium-based silicate phosphor for solid state white lighting

Inorg Chem. 2013 Jul 15;52(14):8010-6. doi: 10.1021/ic400614r. Epub 2013 Jul 3.

Abstract

A novel cerium-substituted, barium yttrium silicate has been identified as an efficient blue-green phosphor for application in solid state lighting. Ba9Y2Si6O24:Ce(3+) was prepared and structurally characterized using synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction. The photoluminescent characterization identified a major peak at 394 nm in the excitation spectrum, making this material viable for near-UV LED excitation. An efficient emission, with a quantum yield of ≈60%, covers a broad portion (430-675 nm) of the visible spectrum, leading to the blue-green color. Concentration quenching occurs when the Ce(3+) content exceeds ≈3 mol %, whereas high temperature photoluminescent measurements show a 25% drop from the room temperature efficiency at 500 K. The emission of this compound can be red-shifted via the solid solution Ba9(Y(1-y)Sc(y))(1.94)Ce(0.06)Si6O24 (y = 0.1, 0.2), allowing for tunable color properties when device integration is considered.