The upconversion photoluminescence and temperature sensing abilities of Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3-9PbTiO3 crystals induced by Er3+/Yb3+ doping

摘要： Er3+/Yb3+-doped Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3-9PbTiO3 ferroelectric crystals were grown by the high-temperature solution method. The micromorphology, phase structure, and upconversion photoluminescence of obtained crystals were analyzed and investigated. As the results suggest, the crystals displayed typical lamellar growth and possessed a pure perovskite structure. Excited by a 980 nm laser, the characteristic upconversion (UC) emissions of Er3+ were observed at room temperature. The luminescence intensity improved with the increasing of excitation power and reached its maximum at 1056 mW. Two-photon process was demonstrated at lower power range. As the temperature increased from 213 to 493 K, the luminescence intensity weakened continuously. An apparent difference in variation trend between two thermally coupled levels (2H11/2 and 4S3/2) was also observed, which was ascribed to the redistribution of electrons at two levels at the heating process. Based on this dependence, the temperature sensing abilities were examined with the help of the fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR) technique. The absolute sensitivity SA increased in the measurement temperature range and its maximum of 0.0033 K-1 was obtained at 493 K. Moreover, low conversion from incident light into heat was also demonstrated, which indicates the feasibility for crystal luminescence at high power pumping. These results make Er3+/Yb3+-doped Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3-9PbTiO3 crystals become a promising candidate in optical devices and temperature sensors.