White luminescence in Dy3+ doped BiOCl phosphors and their Judd–Ofelt analysis

•Dy3+ doped BiOCl phosphors were synthesized at relatively low temperature.•The PL intensity increases up to 9 mol% and then quenched for 11 mol% of Dy3+.•CIE chromaticity diagram confirmed that these phosphors exhibit white luminescence.•Judd–Ofelt parameters and other radiative properties have been determined.

White-light emitting Dy3+ doped layered BiOCl phosphors were synthesized by the solid state route and their structure was confirmed by the Rietveld refinement method. On substitution of Dy3+ ion to Bi3+-site in BiOCl, the photoluminescence spectra exhibit blue (4F9/2 → 6H15/2), yellow (4F9/2 → 6H13/2) and red (4F9/2 → 6H11/2) emissions which function together to generate white light. It was found that the emission intensity increases up to 9 mol% of Dy3+ and then quenched due to dipole–dipole interaction. Judd–Ofelt theory and radiative properties suggest that the present phosphors have a long lifetime, high quantum efficiency, excellent color purity and better stimulated emission cross-section compared to reported Dy3+ doped compounds. The obtained color chromaticity results are close to the National Television System Committee standard and clearly establish the bright prospects of these phosphors in white luminescence.

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