Luminescence and temperature sensing properties of Dy3+-doped YPO4 glass ceramic

Dy3+-doped YPO4 glass ceramic (GC) samples were produced by melt-quenching method and followed heat-treatment. Differential scanning calorimetry curve, X-ray diffraction patterns, Fourier transform infrared spectra, transmission electron microscope images were used to analyze the structure of YPO4 GC. The optimal GC sample is GC565 (sample heat-treatment at 565 °C for 2 h). The fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR) of emissions from 4I15/2 and 4F9/2 to 6H15/2 of Dy3+ in YPO4 GC565 excited by 350 nm light was used to detect temperature. The efficient energy difference between 4I15/2 and 4F9/2 levels is 1296 cm−1 and the maximum relative sensitivity achieves 2.03 %K−1 at 303 K. Our work indicates that Dy3+-doped YPO4 GC have a prospective application in optical temperature sensing.