Temperature effects on the fluorescence characteristics of RbMnF3:Nd3+

The absorption, excitation, and fluorescence spectra and lifetimes of Mn
²⁺
and Nd
³⁺
in RbMnF
3
were investigated in the 5 to 300°K region. The fluorescence of Mn
²⁺
in these systems was found to originate from two metastable levels centered at 5820 and 6300 Å. The Nd
³⁺
emission appears as two groups of sharp lines centered at
\sim10 600
and ∼8900 Å. Energy transfer from manganese to neodymium is observed even at room temperature where the Mn
²⁺
fluorescence is completely quenched and the energy transfer mechanism was found to be of nonradiative type. Detailed information was obtained on the temperature dependence of the fluorescence intensities and decay times of the manganese and neodymium emissions. The results give information on the kinetics of these fluorescent systems.