Enhanced UV emission of Y-doped ZnO nanoparticles

Y-doped ZnO (Zn1−xYxO) nanoparticles with different Y concentrations were synthesized by sol–gel method. The effects of Y concentration on the optical properties of the as-synthesized Zn1−xYxO nanoparticles were investigated. Photoluminescence (PL) measurements revealed that doping of Y in ZnO induced an evidence increase of UV emission. At Y concentration x = 0.07, the UV emission intensity reached maximum, which is about 9 times higher than that of the compared pure ZnO nanoparticles. Exceeding this concentration, the formation of Y2O3 causes a decrease in the UV emission intensity. This enhanced UV emission enables Zn1−xYxO system potential applications in supersensitive UV detector sinimaging, photosensing, and intrachip optical interconnects.