Sol–gel synthesis, structure and luminescence properties of Ba2ZnMoO6:Eu3+ phosphors

Double-perovskite Ba2Zn1 − xMoO6:xEu3+ (x = 0, 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.08, 0.1) orange–red emitting phosphors were synthesized by using the sol–gel method. The crystalline structure and photoluminescence properties of the phosphors were investigated. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns indicate that the structure of matrix Ba2ZnMoO6 is cubic double-perovskite with space group Fm-3m. The Ba2ZnMoO6:Eu3+ phosphors present an intense broad charge transfer (CT) band absorption in near UV range (370–410 nm), which attributes to the charge transfer state of MoO6, and performs orange–red emission of Eu3+ (5D0 → 7F1 transition) at around 596 nm. A low concentration quenching occurs in Ba2ZnMoO6:Eu3+ and the optimal doping concentration is about 6 mol%. The Ba2ZnMoO6:Eu3+ phosphors are considered to be a promising orange–red emitting phosphor for near ultraviolet GaN-based white light emitting diode.