Blue-green Luminescence Properties and Charge Compensation of Ca9MgLi(PO4)7 Doped with Tb3+ and Alkali Metal Ions

Abstract Ca9MgLi(PO4)7: 4%Tb3+, 4%R+ (R = Li, Na, K) phosphors were synthesized by a solid-state reaction method. The crystal structure, morphology, composition and luminescent properties of as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), high-angle annular dark field (HAADF) and spectroscopy technique. The effect of a small concentration of charge compensators like Li+, Na+, K+ on Ca9MgLi(PO4)7: Tb3+ phosphor has also investigated. Ca9MgLi(PO4)7: Tb3+, R+ (R = Li, Na, K) exhibit superior blue-green luminescence around 5D4 → 7F5 (543 nm) to Ca9MgLi(PO4)7: Tb3+ and can be effectively excited by 370 nm light, which implies that efficient charge compensation can promote the emitting of Tb3+ in Ca9MgLi(PO4)7. The CIE coordinates and decay lifetimes of typical samples were also studied. The Ca9MgLi(PO4)7: Tb3+, R+ (R = Li, Na, K) have promising application as a blue-green phosphor for near-ultraviolet chip excited white LEDs.