Authors

Abstract

In this review article, different synthetic procedures and characterization techniques used for the development of materials are discussed briefly. The stability and high luminous intensity of silicate materials makes them practically important in the field of white light emitting diodes (WLEDs). During the experimental designing of our research, we have understood carefully the theoretical and methodological strategy regarding the synthesis of phosphors and then, a large number of silicate-based luminescent materials have been prepared using sol-gel technology. Among them, a series of silicate materials having composition M(2-x)EuxSi2O7 (M = Y, Gd, La and x = 0.03 moles) have been described in this review prepared with sol-gel process. Intense peak in europium (III) doped M2Si2O7 silicates originate from 5 D0→ 7 F2 transition of Eu 3+ ion available in crystal lattices. X-ray diffraction pattern have triclinic structure for Y2Si2O7 and Gd2Si2O7 silicate phosphors. However, hexagonal and monoclinic structures are obtained for La2Si2O7 material at different temperatures employed for further annealing. Transmission electron microscopic analysis is used to study the morphology and particle size of prepared phosphors. Excellent luminescence response of these silicate phosphors make them suitable for photonic applications and also open up new avenues for solid-state lighting, cathode ray tubes, fluorescent lamps and scintillators etc.

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