| 1. |
- Enrichi, Francesco, et al.
(författare)
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Ag nanoaggregates as efficient broadband sensitizers for Tb3+ ions in silica-zirconia ion-exchanged sol-gel glasses and glass-ceramics
- 2018
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Ingår i: Optical materials (Amsterdam). - : Elsevier. - 0925-3467 .- 1873-1252. ; 84, s. 668-674
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this paper we report the study of down-shifting silica-zirconia glass and glass-ceramic films doped by Tb3+ ions and Ag nanoaggregates, which combine the typical spectral properties of the rare-earth-ions with the broadband sensitizing effect of the metal nanostructures. Na-Tb co-doped silica-zirconia samples were obtained by a modified sol-gel route. Dip-coating deposition followed by annealing for solvent evaporation and matrix densification were repeated several times, obtaining a homogeneous crack-free film. A final treatment at 700 °C or 1000 °C was performed to control the nanoscale structural properties of the samples, resulting respectively in a glass (G) or a glass-ceramic (GC), where tetragonal zirconia nanocrystals are surrounded by an amorphous silica matrix. Ag introduction was then achieved by ion-exchange in a molten salt bath, followed by annealing in air to control the migration and aggregation of the metal ions. The comparison of the structural, compositional and optical properties are presented for G and GC samples, providing evidence of highly efficient photoluminescence enhancement in both systems, slightly better in G than in GC samples, with a remarkable increase of the green Tb3+ PL emission at 330 nm excitation: 12 times for G and 8 times for GC samples. Furthermore, after Ag-exchange, the shape of Tb3+ excitation resembles the one of Ag ions/nanoaggregates, with a broad significant absorption in the whole UV-blue spectral region. This broadband enhanced downshifting could find potential applications in lighting devices and in PV solar cells.
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| 2. |
- Enrichi, Francesco, et al.
(författare)
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Visible to NIR downconversion process in Tb3+-Yb3+ codoped silica-hafnia glass and glass-ceramic sol-gel waveguides for solar cells
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Luminescence. - : Elsevier. - 0022-2313 .- 1872-7883. ; 193, s. 44-50
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The efficiency of photovoltaic solar cells is strongly related to the spectral absorption and photo-conversion properties of the cell's active material, which does not exploit the whole broadband solar spectrum. This mismatch between the spectrum of the solar light and the wavelength dependent cell's response can be partially overcome by using luminescent conversion layers in front or in the back of the solar cell. In this paper, the investigation of Tb3+-Yb3+ co-doped SiO2-HfO2 glass and glass-ceramic waveguides is presented. Due to a down-conversion process based on cooperative energy transfer between one Tb3+ ion and two Yb3+ ions, a blue photon at 488 nm can be divided in two NIR photons at 980 nm. Films with different molar concentrations of rare earths, up to a total amount of [Tb+Yb] = 15%, were prepared by a sol-gel route, using dip-coating deposition on SiO2 substrates. For all the films, the molar ratio [Yb]/[Tb] was taken equal to 4. The comparison of the energy-transfer efficiency between Tb3+ and Yb3+ ions in the glass and in the glass-ceramic materials demonstrated the higher performance of the glass-ceramic, with a maximum quantum transfer efficiency of 179% for the highest rare earth doping concentration. Moreover, experimental results and comparison with proper rate equations modelling showed a linear dependence of the photoluminescence emission intensity for the Yb3+ ions 2F5/2 → 2F7/2 transition at 980 nm on the excitation power, indicating a direct transfer process from Tb3+ to Yb3+ ions. The reported waveguides could find applications not only as downconverting filters in transmission but also as efficient solar concentrators in the near-IR spectral region
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| 3. |
- Zur, Lidia Z., et al.
(författare)
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Comparison between glass and glass-ceramic silica-hafnia matrices on the down-conversion efficiency of Tb3+/Yb3+ rare earth ions
- 2019
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Ingår i: Optical materials (Amsterdam). - : Elsevier. - 0925-3467 .- 1873-1252. ; 87, s. 102-106
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this paper, the investigation of energy transfer efficiency in Tb3+-Yb3+ co-doped SiO2-HfO2 glass and glass-ceramic waveguides is presented. Cooperative energy transfer between these two ions allows to cut one UV or 488 nm photon in two 980 nm photons and could have important applications in improving the performance of photovoltaic solar cells. Thin films with different molar concentrations of rare earths, up to a total concentration of 21%, were prepared by a sol-gel route, using dip-coating deposition technique on SiO2 substrates. The ratio between Yb3+ and Tb3+ ions in all the prepared thin films is constant and equal to 4. The energy transfer between Tb3+ and Yb3+ ions in glass and glass-ceramic waveguides shows the higher efficiency for glass-ceramic with a maximum quantum transfer efficiency of about 190% for the sample containing 19% of rare earths.
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