Superposition-model analysis of rare-earth doped BaY 2 F 8

Abstract

The energy level schemes of four rare-earth dopants (Ce 3+ , Nd 3+ , Dy 3+ , and Er 3+ ) in BaY 2 F 8 , as determined by optical absorption spectra, were fitted with a single-ion Hamiltonian and analysed within Newman's Superposition Model for the crystal field. A unified picture for the four dopants was obtained, by assuming a distortion of the F m ligand cage around the RE site; within the framework of the Superposition Model, this distortion is found to have a marked anisotropic behaviour for heavy rare earths, while it turns into an isotropic expansion of the nearest-neighbours polyhedron for light rare earths. It is also inferred that the substituting ion may occupy an off-center position with respect to the original Y 3+ site in the crystal.