Photoluminescence properties of samarium-doped TiO2 semiconductor nanocrystalline powders

In this work, the luminescence properties of samarium ions-doped titanium dioxide prepared by the sol–gel process were studied. A strong orange red emission (4G5/2−6H7/2 (orange) and 4G5/2–6H9/2 (red)) ascribed to the electron transitions in 4f5 configuration of Sm3+ ions was observed upon excitation into TiO2 host. The energy transfer from TiO2 to Sm3+ was verified and the relevant mechanism was discussed. In addition, the impacts of metal ion codopants upon the TiO2:Sm3+ luminescence properties were studied. The results indicated that the central excitation band shifted to blue in the bismuth-codoped materials (0.5–4% in molar ratio), while it shifted to red in the zirconium-codoped materials. Such materials may find applications in white light-emission diode (LED) and tunable solid lasers.