Sharp photoluminescence of Pr3+ ions in yttrium oxyfluoride nanospheres: thermographic phosphor characteristics using the fluorescence intensity ratio technique

Abstract

YOF:Pr nanoparticles prepared by Pechni sol-gel method were investigated for temperature sensing in this work. Structural investigation such as XRD, Raman, SEM and EDS were done. Photoluminescence experiments at ambient temperature for three different concentrations and with variation in temperature were performed for application in fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR) technique. The FIR of the thermally coupled levels (TCL) 3P0 and 3P1 was determined with respect to temperature and found that the relative sensitivity of the material is 9.37 and 0.87% K−1 at 90 and 300 K, respectively. Results proved that Pr3+ in YOF nanoparticles can be used for non-contact temperature determination.