Abstract: Zirconium silicate (ZrSiO₄) powders with different doping concentrations of Mn⁴⁺ were prepared by solid-state reactions. The effect on the photoluminescence properties of ZrSiO₄∶Mn⁴⁺ was studied. The structure of ZrSiO₄∶Mn⁴⁺ was analyzed by X-ray powder diffractometer (XRD). The result shows that the powder was completely synthesized at 1 400 ℃. The spectral properties of ZrSiO₄∶Mn⁴⁺ powders at different doping concentrations were studied. The best luminescence performance was obtained at 0.3%Mn⁴⁺ doping concentration. In the excitation spectrum, the peak at 363 nm is caused by the superposition of the charge transfer band of O^2--Mn⁴⁺ and the ⁴A₂-⁴T₁ energy level transition of the spin-allowed Mn⁴⁺, while the peak at 450 nm is caused by the ⁴A₂-⁴T₂ energy level transition of the Mn⁴⁺. The main emission peaking at 667 nm was due to the spin-forbidden transitions ²E-⁴A₂ of Mn⁴⁺. The other peak located at 698 nm was caused by anti-stokes vibronic sidebands associated with the excited state ²E of Mn⁴⁺. The decay curves show that the lifetime of ZrSiO₄∶0.1% Mn⁴⁺ powders is 0.204 1 ms. The results show that ZrSiO₄∶Mn⁴⁺ powders have good luminescent properties, they have the potential to be used in LED lighting industry.

Key words: red phosphor, zirconium silicate, spectroscopic property, luminescent material, solid-state reaction