Size and temperature dependence of optical properties of Eu3+:Sr2CeO4 nanocrystals for their application in luminescence thermometry

• Eu3+:Sr2CeO4 nanocrystals was successfully synthesized by modified sol–gel method.
• The average grain sizes of Eu3+:Sr2CeO4 nanocrystals were in range of 57–207 nm.
• The impact of size effect on the optical properties of the nanocrystals was studied.

The synthesis of Eu3+:Sr2CeO4 nanocrystals prepared by a modified sol–gel method is reported. The nanocrystalline powders were annealed at different temperatures to control the average grain size of nanocrystals. The absorption, emission and excitation spectra of Eu3+:Sr2CeO4 nanocrystals were investigated in a temperature range of 10–300 K. In particular the influence of temperature and average nanocrystal size on the optical properties of Eu3+:Sr2CeO4 was investigated. It was found that with increasing grain size the luminescence lifetimes significantly decreased. The shortening of lifetimes was extremely strong at elevated temperature. Due to the strong temperature dependence of the f–f and charge transfer (CT) luminescence intensity ratio the Eu3+:Sr2CeO4 nanocrystals can be used in the long contact temperature sensing.

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