Simultaneous structure and luminescence property control of barium carbonate nanocrystals through small amount of...

Rare earth doping has been widely applied in many functional nanomaterials with desirable properties and functions, which would have a significant effect on the growth process of the materials. However, the controlling strategy is limited into high concentration of lanthanide doping, which produces concentration quenching of the lanthanide ion luminescence with an increase in the Ln³⁺ concentration, resulting in lowering the fluorescence quantum yield of lanthanide ion. Herein, for the first time, we demonstrate simultaneous control of the structures and luminescence properties of BaCO₃ nanocrystals via a small amount of Tb³⁺ doping strategy. In fact, Tb³⁺ would partially occupy Ba²⁺ sites, resulting in the changes to the structures of the BaCO₃ nanocrystals, which is primarily determined by charge modulation, including the contributions from the surfaces of crystal nuclei and building blocks. These structurally modified nanocrystals exhibit tunable luminescence properties, thus emerging as potential candidates for photonic devices such as light-emitting diodes and color displays.