Luminescent and structural properties of ScxY1-xVO4:Eu3+ solid solutions

Highlights: • Sc_xY_1-xVO₄:Eu³⁺ single-phase solid solutions were synthesized by the solid state method. • The rate of structural disorder correlates with the intensity of ⁵D₀ – ⁷F₀ Eu³⁺ emission. • Cation electronic states impedes energy transfer from host to Eu³⁺. • Bandgap values are determined using TSL excitation spectra. Solid solutions of Sc_xY_1-xVO₄:Eu³⁺ were grown by solid state method and their structural and luminescent properties were studied using XRD, SEM and luminescence spectroscopy techniques. The influence of annealing on sample phase purity is investigated. A linear decrease of crystal lattice constants with the increase of x value is shown. The influence of crystal structure disorder on the features of Eu³⁺ emission spectra in the solid solutions is studied. The dependence of luminescence intensity on x value under intracenter Eu³⁺ excitation differs from that obtained under interband and high-energy excitations due to the peculiarities of energy transfer from the host to Eu³⁺ emission centers. The role of VO₄³⁻ group as well as cation electronic states in the energy transfer to Eu³⁺ emission centers is discussed. The bandgap values are determined using the data of TSL excitation spectra.