Effect of particle morphology and coating thickness on fluorescent behavior of Ce doped yttrium aluminium garnet phosphor screens

Cerium activated yttrium aluminium garnet (Y₃Al₅O₁₂; YAG) powder was synthesized by co-precipitation method using aluminium nitrate, yttrium nitrate and cerium nitrate as starting materials and ammonium carbonate as precipitant. The concentration of cerium (Ce) was varied from 0.02 to 0.1 mol. The precursor of Ce doped YAG was calcined at 1250 °C for 1–12 h for achieving different morphology of particles. X-ray diffraction analysis was carried out to confirm the formation of YAG phase. Electrophoretic deposition was used for uniform coating of synthesized YAG:Ce powder on glass substrate. The deposition time was varied from 1 to 9 min for achieving different thickness of coating. Photoluminescence property of coating was investigated as a function of dopant concentration, particle morphology and coating thickness. The excitation wavelength used in this investigation was 430 nm. YAG:Ce showed peak emission at ~530 nm. The maximum emission intensity was achieved at Ce content of 0.04 mol in YAG with spherical morphology of particles having 300 nm particle size and 11 μm coating thickness.