Luminescent properties of YAG:Ce³⁺ phosphor powders prepared by hydrothermal-homogeneous precipitation method

Y_{3 - x}Ce_xAl₅O₁₂ (YAG:Ce³⁺) phosphor powders were successfully prepared by hydrothermal-homogenous precipitation (HHP) method, under mild conditions with inexpensive aluminum and yttrium nitrates as the starting materials and urea as homogenous precipitant. The pure YAG crystalline phase could be formed after hydrothermal treatment at 100 °C for 4 h and 240 °C for 20 h and postannealing process at 1200 °C for 2 h. All of the as-prepared YAG:Ce³⁺ powders did not have the CeO₂ phase. The photoluminescence spectrum of crystalline YAG:Ce³⁺ phosphors showed the emission intensity of phosphor increased with increasing the annealed temperature and reached its maximum as the molar fraction of cerium ion was 0.10, and also showed the maximum emission wavelength nearly unchanged with the calcination temperature and cerium doping concentration.