Room temperature photoluminescence of TiO2 thin films doped with Tb

Results on the fabrication and characterisation of thin films of the novel host, titania (TiO2), for the Tb3+ activator ion are reported. The titania films were produced by the sot-gel process at room temperature using the di p coating method and deposited on silicon and coming glass substrates. It i s shown that a different surface morphology is developed for the TiO2:Tb fi lms deposited on different substrates. When enough amount of Th is incorpor ated and, a He-Cd 325 nm photoexcitation is used as excitation line, the fi lms show green photoluminescence (PL) signal associated with the D-5(4) --> F-7(j) transition of the electronic structure of Tb3+ plus an broad band d ue to matrix's defects. The PL emission has better characteristics for the films deposited on silicon wafers.