LAUSR

Abstract A series of orange-red emitting Sm3+ activated Ba0.85Ca0.15Ti0.90Zr0.10O3 (BCZT: xSm3+, x = 0.001–0.007) are synthesized by a conventional solid-state reaction method. The Sm3+ ions composition dependent photoluminescence properties are systematically investigated. Under the excitation of a 407 nm near-ultraviolet light, the ceramics exhibit strong characteristic emission of Sm3+ ions with dominant orange-red emission peak at around 595 nm, which is ascribed to the transition of 4G5/2 → 6H7/2. The BCZT: 0.004Sm3+ ceramic displays the optimal emission among these Sm3+-doped BCZT solid solutions. Moreover, the photoluminescence intensity exhibits extremely sensitive to temperature, suggesting that BCZT: 0.004Sm3+ could be applicable for temperature sensing. A maximum relative sensitivity of 1.89% K−1 at 453 K is obtained. Furthermore, the existence of ferroelectricity in the BCZT host combined with Sm3+ activated photoluminescence properties could be useful for developing optical-electro multifunctional materials and devices.