Concentration quenching inhibition and fluorescence enhancement in Eu(3+)-doped molybdate red phosphors with two-phase mixing

Red phosphor plays a crucial role in improving the quality of white light illumination and backlight displays. However, significant challenges remain to enhance red emission intensity in different matrix materials. Herein, a class of two-phase mixing red phosphors of NaIn(1−x)(MoO(4))(2):xEu(3+) (NIMO:xEu(3+)) has been successfully prepared by the traditional high-temperature solid-state reaction method. The coordination environment, phase structure, excitation and emission spectra, fluorescence kinetics, and temperature-dependent luminescence properties of the system have been studied comprehensively. It is worth mentioning that the red emission intensity continues to increase with the increased Eu(3+) doping concentration, and the fluorescence lifetimes remain unchanged. These extraordinary phenomena mainly stem from the special concentration quenching mechanism in such two-phase mixing material, namely, the increased lattice interface barriers from Eu six-coordinated units and Eu eight-coordinated units can effectively block the non-radiation by enlarging the average distance between luminescent centers. The improved fluorescence thermal stability and suppressed non-radiative transition rate in NIMO:40%Eu(3+) sample are further proving regulatory role of lattice interface barriers. In addition, a warm white light-emitting diode (LED) is successfully fabricated, exhibiting Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage (CIE) coordinates of (0.343, 0.335), a color rendering index (CRI) of 92.1, and a correlated color temperature (CCT) of 5013 K, showing significant application prospects for high-quality lighting devices.