Photoluminescence of the nanosized xerogel Zn$_{2}$SiO$_{4}$ : Mn$^{2+}$ in pores of anodic alumina

The photoluminescence properties of a composite material prepared by the introduction of the nanosized phosphor Zn$_{2}$SiO$_{4}$ : Mn$^{2+}$ into porous anodic alumina have been investigated. Scanning electron microscopy studies have revealed that Zn$_{2}$SiO$_{4}$ : Mn$^{2+}$ particles are uniformly distributed in 70% of the volume of the pore channels. The samples exhibit an intense luminescence in the range of 2.3–3.0 eV, which corresponds to the emission of different types of F centers in alumina. After the formation of Zn$_{2}$SiO$_{4}$ : Mn$^{2+}$ nanoparticles in the pores, an intense photoluminescence band is observed at 2.4 eV due to the $^{4}T_{1}$–$^{6}A_{1}$ electronic transition within the 3$d$ shell of the Mn$^{2+}$ activator ion. It has been found that the maximum of the photoluminescence of Zn$_{2}$SiO$_{4}$ : Mn$^{2+}$ xerogel nanoparticles located in the porous matrix is shifted to higher energies, and the luminescence decay time decreases significantly.