AVS 51st International Symposium
    Nanometer-scale Science and Technology Tuesday Sessions
       Session NS-TuP

Paper NS-TuP32
Photoluminescent Emission Properties of Porous Nanostructured Y@sub 2@o@sub 3@:eu Thin Films

Tuesday, November 16, 2004, 4:00 pm, Room Exhibit Hall B

Session: Poster Session
Presenter: P.C.P. Hrudey, University of Alberta, Canada
Authors: P.C.P. Hrudey, University of Alberta, Canada
M. Taschuk, University of Alberta, Canada
Y.Y. Tsui, University of Alberta, Canada
R. Fedosejevs, University of Alberta, Canada
M.J. Brett, University of Alberta, Canada
Correspondent: Click to Email
Nanostructured photoluminescent thin films of europium-doped yttrium oxide (Y@sub 2@O@sub 3@:Eu), a well-known luminescent material, were grown using electron beam evaporation, in combination with the Glancing Angle Deposition (GLAD) technique. GLAD makes use of controlled substrate motion during extremely oblique physical vapour deposition (PVD) of a thin film resulting in a high degree of control over the nanostructure of the film. Films were deposited using pre-doped Y@sub 2@O@sub 3@:Eu source material. Scanning electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction were used to characterize film nanostructure, while the light emission properties of these films were characterized by photoluminescence measurements. In order to improve the photoluminescent response of the films a post-deposition annealing treatment was used. By annealing in air at 850°C, the film crystallinity improves leading to increases in the photoluminescent response by greater than three times that of the as-deposited samples. The emission properties of vertical posts, helices, and normally-incidence solid thin films were obtained and compared. In studying the effect of film structure on the emission properties vertical posts films were found to emit two times more light in the direction normal to the substrate surface than solid films that contained an equivalent mass of material. Additionally, optical filter devices incorporating Y@sub 2@O@sub3@:Eu were fabricated and studied for their effects on the emission properties.