Enhanced fluorescence of Eu3+ induced by energy transfer from nanosized SnO2 crystals in glass

Eu3+-doped SnO2–SiO2 glasses were prepared using a sol–gel method, where nanosized SnO2 crystals of ∼8 nm in diameter were precipitated to dope the Eu3+ ions. When excited at the energy corresponding to the absorption edge of the SnO2 nanocrystals, the SnO2-doped glass exhibits fluorescence intensities of the Eu3+ ions higher than 150 times that of the glass without nanocrystals. The energies, which are absorbed by the quantum-dot effect in the nanosized crystals, are efficiently transferred into the Eu3+ ions to cause the high emission.