Characterization of strontium aluminate phosphors prepared from milled SrCO3

SrAl2O4:Eu2+,Dy3+ phosphors were prepared by solid-state reaction from milled SrCO3. The effect of milling treatment of SrCO3 on the formation and physical properties of SrAl2O4 phosphors was investigated by DTA, XRD, BET, SEM and PL. The results indicate that small crystallite size and large specific surface area of the milled SrCO3 were able to increase the contact points between the reactants and to reduce the average transport distance for materials diffusion. Therefore, the solid-state reaction can be accelerated and the formation of SrAl2O4 was facilitated. On the other hand, the number of nucleation sites was also suggested to be increased that leads to a decrease in SrAl2O4 crystallite size and an increase in specific surface area. The increased specific surface area was proposed to increase the emission intensity and afterglow decay.