An investigation was made of the relationship between the structure of the photoluminescence excitation bands from yttria-stabilized zirconia, and the defect states caused by O vacancies. The photoluminescence excitation spectra of samples with 2 to 8mol%Y2O3 were measured at room temperature, and photoluminescence excitation bands from the samples were observed at around 240 and 280nm. A linear relationship was found between the intensity of the photoluminescence excitation band at 241nm and the concentration of O vacancies in the samples. The concentration of O vacancies could be estimated from this linear relationship. It was also found that the photoluminescence excitation bands at around 240 and 280nm could be attributed to the bulk and local states of O vacancies, respectively.

Photoluminescence Excitation Bands Corresponding to Defect States Due to Oxygen Vacancies in Yttria-Stabilized Zirconia. H.Nakajima, T.Mori: Journal of Alloys and Compounds, 2006, 408-412, 728-31