Upconversion luminescence from Er-N codoped of ZnO nanowires prepared by ion implantation method

Nitrogen and erbium co-doped of ZnO nanowires (NWs) are fabricated by ion implantation and subsequent annealing in air. The incorporation of Er3+ and N+ ions is verified by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and Raman spectra. The samples exhibit upconversion photoluminescence around ∼550 nm and ∼660 nm under an excitation at 980 nm. It is discovered that the N-doped can drastically increase the upconversion photoluminescence intensity by modifying the local structure around Er3+ in ZnO matrix. The enhancement of the PL intensity by the N-doped is caused by the formation of ErO6−xNx octahedron complexes. With the increase of the annealing temperature (Ta), the Er3+ ions diffuse towards the surface of the NWs, which benefits the red emission and evokes the variation of intensity ratio owing to the existence of some organic groups.

Research highlights▶ Nitrogen and erbium co-doped of ZnO nanowires (NWs) are fabricated by ion implantation and subsequent annealing in air. The enhancement of the PL intensity by the N-doped is caused by the formation of ErO6−xNx octahedron complexes. With the increase of the Ta, the Er3+ ions diffuse towards the surface of the NWs, which benefits the red emission owing to the existence of some organic groups.