Ion and Electron Beam Induced Luminescence of Rare Earth Doped YAG Crystals

G. Gawlik, J. Sarnecki, I. Jóźwik, J. Jagielski and M. Pawłowska Institute of Electronic Materials Technology, Wólczyńska 133, 01-919 Warszawa, Poland

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The aim of this work was the evaluation of ion-beam induced luminescence for the characterization of luminescent oxide materials containing rare earth elements. The yttrium aluminium garnet epilayers doped with Nd, Pr, Ho, and Tm atoms were used. The ion-beam induced luminescence spectra were excited using 100 keV H2+ ion beam and were recorded in the wavelengths ranging from 300 nm up to 1000 nm. The separate parts of the surface of the same samples were used for ion-beam induced luminescence and cathodoluminescence experiments. Cathodoluminescence spectra have been recorded in the range from 370 nm up to 850 nm at 20 keV e-beam in scanning electron microscope equipped with a grating spectrometer coupled with a photomultiplier. The observed narrow ion-beam induced luminescence lines can be ascribed to the well known radiative transitions in the rare-earth ions in the YAG crystals. The cathodoluminescence spectra reveal essentially the same emission lines as ion-beam induced luminescence. The decrease of the ion-beam induced luminescence lines intensity has been observed under the increasing ion fluences. The ion-beam induced luminescence may be used for characterization of transparent luminescent materials as an alternative method for cathodoluminescence and can be especially useful for observation of ion-beam damage formation in crystals.

DOI: 10.12693/APhysPolA.120.181 PACS numbers: 78.60.Hk, 52.59.Bi, 79.20.Rf, 61.80.Lj, 41.75.Ak, 41.75.Cn, 61.72.S-, 61.72.-y, 29.40.-n, 77.84.Bw, 79.60.Ht, 87.53.Bn, 78.55.-m, 78.60.-b, 77.55.Px, 77.55.-g, 25.40.Lw