Eu^III doped TiO₂ or ZrO₂ meso-porous films: from the study of the Eu^III ions location to the study of the correlations between luminescence and the surface reactivity

Materials contemporary scientific research is largely devoted to the optimization and the elaboration of new poly-functional, multi-structured and size-reduced materials. Then, specific behaviors due to the different interfacial aspects of those materials - physical interfaces between different matter states, different chemical phases... or properties interfaces - have become a major issue requiring further investigations. In this context, our work deals with correlations that could be established between luminescence properties and surface reactivity of Eu^III-doped metal oxide meso-porous thin films. As properties can be linked to materials structure, an important part of our work has been dedicated to structural characterization. Eu^III ions incorporation specific effects and ions location within film walls have been particularly studied. Finally, it appeared that Eu^III ions luminescence could provide a mean to follow redox reactions occurring within pores, such as organic compounds photo-degradation or metallic salts photo-reduction. In situ photo-reduction can lead to periodic arrays of metallic nanoparticles. Those materials can open up the way in many applications such as optical telecommunication, photonics, photo-catalysis... (author)