Single-phased white-light-emitting NaCaBO3:Ce3+,Tb3+,Mn2+ phosphors for LED applications

Abstract

A series of NaCaBO₃:Ce³⁺,Tb³⁺,Mn²⁺ borate phosphors were prepared via a high-temperature solid-state reaction. The obtained phosphors exhibit a strong excitation band between 250 and 400 nm, matching well with the dominant emission band of a NUV light-emitting-diode (LED) chip. The phosphors can generate light from blue to green, and from blue to red by Ce³⁺→Tb³⁺ and Ce³⁺→Mn²⁺, respectively. Furthermore, a wide-range-tunable white light emission was obtained by precisely controlling the contents of Ce³⁺, Mn²⁺, Tb³⁺. The results show that this phosphor has potential applications as a single-phased phosphor for NUV white LEDs.