Morphology-controlled synthesis of Eu3 +-doped calcium molybdate red phosphors via a facile room temperature precipitation route

•CaMoO4:Eu3 +samples with different morphologies were obtained room temperature.•The sample morphology is controllable by adjusting the experimental conditions.•As the aging time increased, morphology of the samples underwent an obvious change.

Hyperfine red phosphors composed of Eu3 + ion-doped CaMoO4 with varying morphologies were prepared via a facile precipitation method at room temperature without any organic additives. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy were used to characterize the synthesized products. The morphologies of the prepared CaMoO4:Eu3 + phosphors were controllable by adjusting the fundamental experimental conditions such as the pH value of the initial solution, the molar ratios of Ca(NO3)2/(NH4)6Mo7O24, the concentrations of the reactants, the precipitation reagents, and the raw materials. The formation process of CaMoO4:Eu3 + based on the aging time is discussed in detail. The room-temperature photoluminescence properties of the as-prepared CaMoO4:Eu3+ phosphors under diverse experimental conditions were also studied systematically, and their emission spectra showed emission characteristic of Eu3 +.

Graphical abstractThe morphologies of CaMoO4:Eu3 + samples obtained at different lengths of time (0–8 days) were discussed in detail. As the aging time increased, the size and morphology of the samples underwent an obvious change. These samples display the interesting morphologies of twinned hemispheres, single hemispheres, and quasi-spherical particles, respectively.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide