Red shift properties, crystal field theory and nephelauxetic effect on Mn4+-doped SrMgAl10-yGayO17 red phosphor for plant growth LED light

The discovery of novel Mn4+-doped oxide red phosphor with suitable spectrum for plant growth is a hot issue in the recent years due to the characteristic red photoluminescence of 2Eg → 4A2 transition in Mn4+ ions. Generally, the emission position of Mn4+ is hard to tune because of specific crystal field in most phosphors. In this work, tunable luminescence property with obvious red shift in the spectra is observed in the Mn4+-doped SrMgAl10-yGayO17 red phosphor via simple substitution of Ga3+ for Al3+, and crystal field theory and nephelauxetic effect are employed to explain this phenomenon. Meanwhile, the Ga3+ dopant changes the shape of the spectra because Ga3+ dopant guides the replacement site of Mn4+ and changes the luminescence center. Improved emission intensity is obtained because appropriate Ga3+ doping leads to larger band gap and reduces non-radiative transitions. Phosphor-converted LED (pc-LED) devices fabricated with blue chip (470 nm) and the as-obtained SrMgAl10-yGayO17:1.0%Mn4+ phosphors emit bright blue and red light, which fit the absorption regions of plant pigments well, thus SrMgAl10-yGayO17:Mn4+ phosphor can be a candidate for plant growth LED light.