Near Infrared Emission at 1000 nm from Nanostructured Pr3+/Yb3+ Co-doped SiO2-Nb2O5 for Solar Cell Application

Energy conversion, involving UV and Vis absorption to generate near infrared (NIR) emission at 1000 nm from nanostructured Pr3+/Yb3+ co-doped SiO2-Nb2O5 for solar cell application was the main focus of this work. The synthesis, structural and optical characterization of Pr3+/Yb3+ co-doped 70SiO2-30Nb2O5 nanocomposites and planar waveguides prepared by the sol gel method are reported. The influence of the rare earth content and thermal annealing on the crystallization process and the luminescence properties was studied. The excitation spectra revealed the energy transfer between the Pr3+ and Yb...