Laser synthesis of ruby and its nanoparticles for photo-conversion of solar spectrum

Abstract

Ruby grains are synthesized by laser heating of the dry mixture of Al2O3 and Cr2O3 in air. Quasi-continuous radiation of a Nd:YAG laser was used for this purpose with an average power of 15 W. The synthesized ruby was characterized by x-ray diffractometry. Ruby grains demonstrate strong photo-luminescence in the vicinity of 700 nm. Ruby particles were further fragmented to smaller particles using the technique of laser fragmentation in liquids and integrated into a polymer matrix. A luminescence map acquired with the help of a photo-fluorimeter confirms efficient photo-conversion of green-blue radiation of the synthesized ruby into the red region.