Luminescence properties of Eu2+-activated NaCaBeSi2O6F for white light-emitting diode applications

Highlights: • A novel blue-emitting garnet NaCaBeSi₂O₆F:Eu²⁺ phosphor was synthesized. • The broad NUV excitation band (300–400 nm) gives blue emission. • The LED made with NaCaBeSi₂O₆F:Eu²⁺ and green and red-emitting phosphors gives white-light emission. - Abstract: A series of blue-emitting NaCaBeSi₂O₆F:Eu²⁺ phosphors were obtained via a solid state reaction. NaCaBeSi₂O₆F:Eu²⁺ exhibit a broad absorption from 250 to 450 nm when monitored at 467 nm and display a broad emission band from 400 to 600 nm when excited at 397 nm. The concentration quenching was obtained when the concentration of Eu²⁺ was increased to 0.8 mol%. Energy transfer interactions between Eu²⁺ in host is due to dipole-dipole mechanisms and the critical distance was calculated to be 31.96 Å. The results obtained in this study highly indicates that NaCaBeSi₂O₆F:Eu²⁺ can be a potential blue-emitting phosphor for light quality improvement in white-LED applications.