Effects of different TiO2 phases on the luminescence of CaTiO3:Pr3+

CaTiO3 is widely used in the ceramic industry, and when it is doped with Pr3+ it glows with a single red emission at a wavelength of 613 nm. The red emission is attributed to the D-1(2)-> H-3(4) radiative transition of Pr3+ upon ultraviolet (UV) or electron beam irradiation. The compound was prepared by using rutile and anatase polymorphs of TiO2 to investigate their effects on the luminescence properties. X-ray diffraction patterns of CaTiO3:Pr3+ phosphor prepared with rutile polymorph show that the phosphor was successfully synthesized without any additional phases, whereas the patterns for the phosphor prepared with anatase polymorph show unreacted TiO2 phases. The unreacted phases resulted in lowered luminescence intensity of the phosphor prepared with the anatase TiO2. The chemical stability of the phosphor was also investigated by exposing it to a prolonged electron beam irradiation.