Effective deactivation of the ZnS visible photoluminescence by iron impurities

A microscopic model of the effective deactivation of the ZnS visible photoluminescence by iron impurities is presented. It is shown that strong photoionization (Fe²⁺{→}Fe³⁺) absorption enables an effective transfer of energy between centers active in luminescence processes and iron to take place followed only by infrared deexcitation. Furthermore, it is shown that iron compensates copper in the ZnS lattice. Such a process diminishes the role of copper in ZnS visible photoluminescence and is the main reason for high efficiency of the deactivation process due to iron impurities.