Design of plasmonic rare earth phosphor films by Pulsed Laser Deposition

Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) is an efficient method for innovative composite material research, such as plasmonic structures with metal/phosphor mixed architectures controlled at the nanoscale. Theoretical studies on these plasmonic structures show promising results for many potential applications e.g. colored displays, optical telecommunication fibers and photovoltaic spectral conversion layer. However the experimental observations of these effects on rare earth phosphors are scarce. Indeed, the size and the shape of the metallic nanostructures, as well as the distance between the emitter and the metal must be controlled at the nanoscale level. PLD is a suitable method for the controlled design of such structured multilayers. This technique allows the deposition in a single step, guarantees a high quality of the interfaces and prevents any reactivity of the embedded metallic structures from ambient atmosphere. Moreover the adjustment of thickness is realized at the nanoscale. In this presentation, we propose to compile our results on the plasmonic effects on red Eu:Y2O3 phosphor. Using two kinds of metal, Ag and Al, the plasmon resonance is adjusted to the absorption of Eu3+ ions in blue f-f dipolar electric transition or in UV Eu-O transfer charge respectively [1]. The effects of the spacer, the shape of metal and the layer architecture (isolated nanoparticles, nanoresonator and mirror) are presented. [1] A. Pillonnet & al, Appl. Phys. Lett. 100, 153115 (2012)