Luminescence properties of Y2O3:Bi3+, Yb3+ co-doped phosphor for application in solar cells

Bismuth (Bi3+) and ytterbium (Yb3+) co-doped yttrium oxide (Y2O3) phosphor powder was successfully synthesised using the co-precipitation technique. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns confirmed that a single phase cubic structure with a Ia-3 space group was formed. The visible emission confirmed the two symmetry sites, C2 and S6, found in the Y2O3 host material and revealed that Bi3+ ions preferred the S6 site as seen the stronger emission intensity. The near-infrared (NIR) emission of Yb3+ increased significantly by the presence of the Bi3+ ions when compared to the singly doped Y2O3:Yb3+ phosphor with the same Yb3+ concentration. An increase in the NIR emission intensity was also observed by simply increasing the Yb3+ concentration in the Y2O3:Bi3+, Yb3+ phosphor material where the intensity increased up to x = 5.0 mol% of Yb3+ before decreasing due to concentration quenching.