Tunable Luminescence and Ce3+ → Tb3+ → Eu3+ Energy Transfer of Broadband-Excited and Narrow Line Red Emitting Y2SiO5:Ce3+, Tb3+, Eu3+ Phosphor

The Ce 3+ → Tb 3+ → Eu 3+ energy-transfer process enables Eu 3+5 D 0 → 7 F J line emission to be sensitized by the allowed Ce 3+ 4f 1 → 5d 1 absorption transition in near-ultraviolet (NUV) and violet spectral regions. This energy-transfer strategy is applied in Y 2 SiO 5:Ce 3+, Tb 3+, Eu 3+ powders, leading to line-emitting red phosphors that can be excited by short-wavelength InGaN LEDs. The blue, green, and red colors can be tuned by the ratio of Ce 3+ /Tb 3+ /Eu 3+ . Furthermore, the energy-transfer efficiencies and corresponding mechanisms are discussed in detail, and the thermal stability is evaluated. The results suggest that the optimal composition phosphor Y 2 SiO 5: 0.01Ce 3+, 0.50Tb 3+, 0.01Eu 3+, which exhibits an intense Eu 3+ red 4f–4f sharp emission with a strong 4f–5d absorption band of Ce 3+ at the NUV region, could serve as a potential broadband-excited and narrow line red phosphor for NUV LEDs.