Abstract

White-light-emitting materials have attracted considerable attention because of their applications, such as large-surface emitting devices. Inorganic phosphor films are expected to be applied to these devices because of good chemical stability; however, a substantial reduction of fabrication temperature is required for future industrial uses such as lighting materials fabricated onto flexible organic substrates. Here we show the optical properties of white-light-emitting metavanadate phosphors, AVO3 (A: K, Rb and Cs), and we report a new direct fabrication process for RbVO3 films onto flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates by means of a vacuum ultraviolet irradiation using an excimer lamp. In addition, the (Ca,Sr,Pr)TiO3/a-Al2O3/RbVO3/PET heterostructure prepared by an excimer-laser-assisted metal–organic deposition process has demonstrated the possibility of colour modification for RbVO3 films on PET. Our findings suggest new possibilities for further development of large-surface emitting lighting devices.