Luminescence and self-referenced optical temperature sensing performance in Ca2YZr2Al3O12:Bi3+,Eu3+ phosphors

Abstract Ca2YZr2Al3O12:Bi3+,Eu3+ phosphors were elaborated by a traditional solid-state reaction method. The luminescence of Ca2YZr2Al3O12:Bi3+ samples, energy transfer from Bi3+ to Eu3+, and the temperature sensing properties of Ca2YZr2Al3O12:Bi3+,Eu3+ samples have been systematically researched. Under the excitation of ultraviolet light, Bi3+ single doped phosphors give 313 and 392 nm emission bands, which origin from the substitutions of Bi3+ instead of Ca2+ and Y3+ sites, respectively. And the color-adjustable emission from blue to red were observed by increasing Eu3+ content in Ca2YZr2Al3O12:Bi3+,Eu3+ samples. Relying on different temperature dependent variation tendency, the fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR) values present outstanding temperature sensing properties. The absolute and relative sensitivity can be up to 0.826 %K-1 and 0.664 %K-1, respectively. All above results suggest that Ca2YZr2Al3O12:Bi3+,Eu3+ phosphor is a potential alternative for optical thermometer.