Luminescence of Terbium Complexes Incorporated into Silica Matrix

Binary and ternary terbium complexes were synthesized: Tb(N-PA)3*4H2O and Tb(N-PA)3(phen*2H2O (N-HPA = N-phenyl-2-aminobenzoic acid and phen = 1,10-phenanthroline). These complexes were introduced into inorganic polymeric porous silica matrix by the sol-gel method. The luminescence behavior of the complexes in silica gels was compared with the corresponding solid state complexes by means of emission, excitation spectra and luminescence lifetimes. The result indicates that the terbium ions show fewer emission lines and lower emission intensities in the silica gel than those in pure terbium complexes. The lifetimes of terbium ions in silica gel doped with terbium complexes become longer than those of terbium complexes.