Uniform YVO4:Ln3+ (Ln = Eu, Dy, and Sm) nanocrystals: Solvothermal synthesis and luminescence properties

Well-dispersed YVO4:Ln3+ (Ln = Eu, Dy, and Sm) nanocrystals with uniform morphology and size have been synthesized via a facile solvothermal route. XRD results demonstrate that all of the three samples can be well indexed to the pure tetragonal phase of YVO4, indicating that the Eu3+, Dy3+, and Sm3+ have been effectively doped into the host lattices of YVO4. TEM images show that the YVO4 nanocrystals exhibit ellipsoid shape and a mean size of about 20 nm, which is in good agreement with the estimation of XRD results. The YVO4:Ln3+ (Ln = Eu, Dy, and Sm) nanocrystals show strong light emissions with different colors coming from different Ln3+ ions under ultraviolet excitation or low-voltage electron beams excitation, which might find potential applications in the fields such as light emitting phosphors, advanced flat panel display, field emission display devices or biological labeling.