Preparation, structural and optical characterization of rare earth doped mesoporous Y2O3 thin films by EISA method

This paper reports the preparation of meso-structured rare earth (Eu3+, Sm3+ and Er3+)-doped Y2O3 films using the evaporation induced self-assembly (EISA). Thin films with ∼30% of porous volume and pore diameter of 9 nm, stability up to 680 °C were prepared using a specific polyethylene oxide based copolymer structuring agent. X-ray diffraction analysis was performed to study the crystallization of the inorganic network and the porosity. Time-resolved small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and environmental ellipsometry porosimetry (EEP) techniques were used to complete the characterization of the films. The luminescent properties of these layers, i.e. fluorescence spectra and decay profiles, were investigated, showing the optical features characteristic of these lanthanide ions incorporated in the Y2O3 lattice.