A scattered wave model of electronic structure of Eu2+ in BaMgAl10O17 and associated excitation processes

The excitation spectrum of a commercial blue phosphor, BaMgAl10O17:Eu2+ (BAM) has been investigated assuming a distribution of the activator ions at three different sites: Beevers–Ross, anti-Beevers–Ross and mid-oxygen sites in the intermediate plane. The energy levels and wavefunctions of the Eu2+ ions located at these sites have been calculated using the self-consistent field Xα scattered wave cluster molecular orbital approach (SCF-Xα-SW-MO). The molecular orbital eigenvalues are then utilized to develop an energy level diagram and the associated excitation spectrum. A comparison of the calculated excitation peaks with those from experiment provides support for distribution of Eu2+ ions at multiple sites in BAM.