Author(s)

Kenta Miura^*, Takumi Osawa, Yuya Yokota, Tetsuhito Suzuki, Osamu Hanaizumi

Graduate School of Science and Technology, Gunma University, Kiryu, Japan.

We prepared thulium and cerium co-doped tantalum-oxide (Ta₂O₅ :Tm, Ce) thin films by radiofrequency co-sputtering of Tm₂O₃ and CeO₂ pellets on a Ta₂O₅ disc for the first time, and photoluminescence (PL) properties of the films annealed at 700°C, 800°C, 900°C, or 1000°C for 20 min were evaluated. PL peaks around a wavelength of 800 nm due to Tm³⁺ were observed for films annealed at 900°C or 1000°C. The peak intensities of films prepared using one Tm₂O₃ pellet and one CeO₂ pellet were much stronger than those of films prepared using one Tm₂O₃ pellet and two CeO₂ pellets or films prepared using two Tm₂O₃ pellets and one CeO₂ pellet. To obtain the strongest PL intensity from the film, the proper Tm concentration was estimated to be around 1.0 mol%, and the proper Ce concentration was estimated to be around 1.3 mol%. Such Ta₂O₅:Tm, Ce co-sputtered thin films can be used as high-refractive-index materials of autocloned photonic crystals that can be applied to novel light-emitting devices, and they will also be used as anti-reflection and downconversion layers for realizing high-efficiency silicon solar cells.

Tantalum Oxide, Thulium, Cerium, Co-Sputtering, Photoluminescence

Miura, K. , Osawa, T. , Yokota, Y. , Suzuki, T. and Hanaizumi, O. (2015) Photoluminescence Properties of Thulium and Cerium Co-Doped Tantalum-Oxide Films Prepared by Radio-Frequency Co-Sputtering. Materials Sciences and Applications, 6, 263-268. doi: 10.4236/msa.2015.64031.