Photoluminescent ZrO₂:Eu³⁺ nanofibers prepared via electrospinning

Europium-doped zirconium oxide (ZrO₂:Eu³⁺) nanofibers were prepared via electrospinning, in which a mixture of zirconium chloride oxide octahydrate, europium nitrate hexahydrate, poly(vinyl pyrrolidone), dimethylformamide, and ethanol were electrospun at atmospheric conditions. Subsequent calcination to produce ZrO₂:Eu³⁺ nanofibers with diameters around 300 nm. The crystal structure and photoluminescence of the ZrO₂:Eu³⁺ nanofibers were studied as a function of dopant concentration and heating temperature. At a dopant concentration of 5 mol %, tetragonal phase crystals were observed. Photoluminescence spectra revealed several emission bands in the red region corresponding to the transition of ⁵D₀ → ⁷F_J (J = 1; 2; 3; 4). Two most intense emission bands were observed at wavelengths of 606 and 591nm due to the forced electric dipole (⁵D₀ → ⁷F₂) and magnetic dipole (⁵D₀ → ⁷F₁) transitions, respectively. This work demonstrates that one-dimensional photoluminescent materials can be generated by a two step electrospinning and calcination process.