Facile synthesis of yellow-emitting CaAlSiN3:Ce3+ phosphors and the enhancement of red-component by co-doping Eu2+ ions

In this paper, facile synthesis of CaAlSiN3:Ce3+ yellow-emitting phosphors under atmospheric pressure at a moderate temperature and their photoluminescent properties are reported. The prepared CaAlSiN3:Ce3+ phosphors exhibit a broad yellow emission band positioned at 580 nm and covering a bandwidth of 150 nm. The thermal stability of CaAlSiN3:Ce3+ phosphors shows obvious superiority than the commercial YAG: Ce3+ phosphor, indicating its promising application prospect in power LEDs. In addition, the enhancement of red-light component for CaAlSiN3:Ce3+ phosphor is demonstrated by co-doping Eu2+ ions. This study offers a facile route to prepare CaAlSiN3:Ce3+ yellow-emitting phosphors, which may be used as a promising candidate for high performance white LEDs.