Energy Transfer Between Nanocrystalline Host and Eu[sup 3+] Ions in GaN:Eu[sup 3+] Powders

GaN nanocrystalline grains of diameter doped by ions have been synthesized in the powder technology. The energy transfer between nanocrystalline GaN host and ions has been investigated by photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy. It has been shown that there are three channels for the excitation of ions: ( i ) through quantized states in GaN nanocrystals, ( ii ) through defect-related states in the GaN, and ( iii ) directly through the excited states of ions. It has been found that for investigated powder the most efficient is the excitation of ions through quantized states in GaN nanocrystals.