We synthesized a series of double perovskite Eu3+-activated Gd2ZnTiO6 red-emitting phosphors by a solid-state reaction route and analyzed their morphology, crystallinity, luminescent properties, and thermal stability. Under 270 nm of excitation, the prominent emission peak of the phosphors was found to be located in the red region with the central wavelength of 613 nm corresponding to the intra-4f transition of Eu3+ ions from the 5D0 to 7F2 level. The optimum concentration of the activator was determined to be 7 mol%. The studied phosphors also exhibited good thermal stability with the activation energy of 0.233 eV. The white color emitted from the ultraviolet (UV) light-emitting diode device which was coated by commercial blue-/green-emitting phosphors and Gd1.86ZnTiO6:0.14Eu3+ phosphors exhibited a high color rendering index of 82.9. Furthermore, the cathodoluminescence performance of the resultant phosphors was also investigated in detail. These characteristics of Gd2-2x ZnTiO6:2xEu3+ phosphors make them potential candidates for UV-based white light-emitting diodes and field emission displays.
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