In Situ Study of the Temperature and Fluence Dependence of Yb2+ Luminescence in Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (YAG) Single Crystals

In this study, ion-beam-induced luminescence with 2 MeV H+ was used to excite YAG single crystals at different temperatures. Under several constant temperatures, the luminescence intensity of Yb2+ monotonically decreases with increasing fluence, eventually reaching approximately 35% of the initial intensity at a fluence of 3.5 × 1014 cm−2. The nonmonotonic evolution behavior of Yb2+ luminescence intensity with temperature can be effectively described by the intermediate-state model under consecutive temperature variations. The presence of an intermediate state may be the primary cause of the negative thermal quenching of Yb2+ luminescence. Yb2+ luminescence intensity decreased to 60% of the initial intensity when the temperature was continuously varied in the 100–300 K range, although the peak position remained rather stable. The luminescence of Yb2+ exhibits good radiation resistance and thermal stability in the experimental temperature range.