PNNL

Abstract

CePO4:Tb/LaPO4 core/sheath architectured nanowires have been successful synthesized by a facile aqueous chemical method mediated by original CePO4:Tb aggregation seeds. The seed crystals serve as both a luminescence center and nucleation site for epitaxial growth. The seed nanocrystals have irregular sphere-like shape with an average size of around 6.8 nm and a narrow size distribution. When the seed crystals are coated with LaPO4, the resulting CePO4:Tb/LaPO4 core/sheath architectured nanowires have mean diameters of about 7.6 nm and lengths up to 331 nm. Both the photo- and X-ray luminescence demonstrate that the LaPO4 coating increases the luminescence efficiency. These core-sheath structured nanowires may find potential applications in solid state lighting, medical imaging and radiation detection.