Controllable synthesis and luminescent properties of three-dimensional nanostructured CaWO4:Tb3+ microspheres

Three-dimensional (3D) nanostructured CaWO(4):Tb(3+)microspheres assembled by submicrospindles were synthesized via a mild sonochemical route from an aqueous solution of CaCl(2), TbCl(3) and Na(2)WO(4) with the aid of surfactant Polyglycol 600 (PEG-600). The crystal structure and morphology of the as-prepared products were characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). Rietveld refinement was carried out on the XRD data. The results showed that the CaWO(4):Tb(3+)nanoparticles can be formed without ultrasonic irradiation or addition of PEG-600. With continuously increasing irradiation time the submicrospindles and microspheres could be self-assembled. The central diameter and length of the submicrospindles are around 190 and 500 nm, respectively. The 3D CaWO(4):Tb(3+)nanostructured microspheres with diameter of 2-4 μm were assembled by the submicrospindles. A possible formation mechanism for the 3D-structured CaWO(4):Tb(3+)microspheres was proposed. The Photoluminescent (PL) properties of Tb(3+) ions in the nanostructured CaWO(4) microspheres were studied. The energy transfer processes in CaWO(4):Tb(3+)microspheres were analyzed. The electric dipole-dipole energy transfers related to (5)D(3) level were studied by inspecting the fluorescence decay of (5)D(3) level. The energy transfer critical distance was estimated.