Abstract
A novel ceramic synthesis technique, microwave-induced combustion process was investigated for the production of Y 3 Al 5 O 12 :Sm powders with improved physical and luminescence properties. This technique involves the reaction of aluminum nitrate (Al(NO 3 ) 3 ·9H 2 O), yttrium nitrate (Y(NO 3 ) 3 ·6H 2 O), samarium nitrate (Sm(NO 3 ) 3 ·6H 2 O), and carbohydrazide (CO(N 2 H 3 ) 2 ) at microwave-oven and the whole process took only 30 min. The powders of Y 3 Al 5 O 12 :Sm were further investigated by X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), infrared spectroscopy (IR), and photoluminescence emission spectra (PL). The results showed that the formation temperature of YAG phase is significantly low, compared to solid-state reaction route of constituent oxides. For luminescence property, the emission intensity of YAG doped with 3 mol% Sm synthesized by microwave-induced combustion reaches the maximum emission intensity. © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.