High wurtzite content ZnS:Mn with better luminescent performances prepared at lower temperature by a ball milling method

Mechanoluminescent ZnS:Mn phosphor should have a main crystalline structure of wurtzite to get stronger mechanoluminescence. However, preparations of ZnS:Mn with high wurtzite content usually require a high calcination temperature of 1050–1150 °C. Here, we propose an effective strategy of using ball milling premix to greatly reduce the preparation temperature of wurtzite-ZnS:Mn phosphors. X-ray diffraction shows that ZnS:Mn with more than 90 wt% of wurtzite content could be obtained at a calcination temperature of 800 °C, which is 250 °C lower than that without milling. Moreover, the photoluminescence (PL) and mechanoluminescence (ML) of ZnS:Mn phosphors synthesized with a proper milling duration can be considerably enhanced (an enhancement of ∼188% for PL, ∼422% for ML) than those without milling, which maybe correlative with the higher wurtzite content. These findings offer a practical strategy for the large-scale preparation of highly-mechanoluminescent ZnS:Mn and hold the potential to facilitate the development and production of other high-performance phosphors.