Chemical Solution Route to Conformal Phosphor Coatings on Nanostructures

Abstract

We have demonstrated the ability to apply thin conformal films onto complex nanostructures using a polymer assisted deposition technique. Sequestering the metal by binding it to a polymer results in a bottom‐up growth process that leads to conformal film deposition. We have deposited a thin film of the phosphor Eu:YVO4 on 60 μm thick anodiscs® with 200 nm pores resulting in highly luminescent nanostructures.

Polymer assisted deposition of epitaxial oxide thin films

“…By following this simple procedure many different compounds have been grown: single [68][69][70][71][72][73][74][75][76][77][78][79][80][81] and multicationic oxides [38][39][40]60,[82][83][84][85][86][87][88][89][90][91][92] , nitrides 35,36,[93][94][95][96][97] , carbides [98][99][100] and pure element semiconductors, like Germanium 101 . Multicationic oxides are probably the more interesting category due to their large variety of compositions, crystal structures and functionalities.…”

Achieving Color and Function with Structure: Optical and Catalytic Support Properties of ZrO2 Inverse Opal Thin Films

“…These are but a brief snapshot of the diverse architectures used in nature to generate structural color. Physicists and engineers are now using “top-down” approaches − and chemists and biologists are using “bottom-up” approaches − to fabricate photonic crystals operating at near-infrared wavelengths (for optical communications, especially waveguides, fiber-optic cables, fast optic switches, etc.) and visible wavelengths (sensing, high-efficiency laser cavities).…”

Polymer-assisted chemical solution approach to YVO4:Eu nanoparticle networks

“…Such nanoparticle network not only possesses a large surface area due to small particle sizes, but also facilitates charge transports between nanoparticles. 25 In a typical polymer-assisted chemical solution process, [26][27][28] ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and polyethyleneimine (PEI) were used to stabilize metal ions and to control the viscosity and stability of the solution. Since EDTA can be used to bind most metal ions to form a stable EDTA-metal complex, this facile technique could be generalized to other metal oxide systems as well.…”