Crystal structure and photoluminescence of Tb3+ doped Y3GaO6

A solid solution with formula (Y1−xTbx)3GaO6 (x = 0–0.5) was prepared by solid-state reaction method. Powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows that Y3GaO6 is isostructural to Gd3GaO6 (Cmc21), and the lattice parameters are a = 8.8364(1) Å, b = 11.0899(1) Å and c = 5.3937(1) Å. Atomic parameters were derived by Rietveld refinement of the XRD pattern. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra show a strong green emission of 543 nm from the 5D4 → 7F5 transition of Tb3+ at room and liquid nitrogen temperature. There is a wide saturation range of the PL intensity for the Tb3+ content from x = 0.04–0.20, and a long life time about 1200 μs for the green 543 nm emission at room temperature.