We reported a simple and convenient method to determine the film thickness by nanoindentation tests. This method starts from the analysis of the unloading portion of the measured nanoindentation load-displacement curves according to a quadratic polynomial, P = α(h − hf)2 − P0, where P is the indentation load, P0 is the virtual load used to consider the effect of the residual contact stress, h is the indenter displacement (penetration depth), hf is the final displacement after complete unloading which should be determined by curve fitting, and α is a constant. Then the best-fit value of the parameter P0 is plotted as a function of the maximum penetration depth, hmax. Such a P0 versus hmax curve may pass through a minimum, and hmax corresponding to this minimum would be equal to the film thickness value.

A simple solution combustion synthesis technique was explored to produce Tb3+-doped Lu3Al5O12 (LuAG:Tb) phosphor with particle size in the range from about 25 to 900 nm by using glycine, urea, and the mixture of them as fuels. The effects of processing parameters such as type of fuel, fuel-to-oxidizer ratio and the composition of the complex fuel were studied. An increase in phosphor brightness and a decrease in crystallization temperature with increasing urea content in the fuel were observed. The integrated emission intensity ratio of the 5D3–7Fj transition to the 5D4–7Fj transition as a function of Tb concentration in LuAG was also investigated. It is very interesting that the growth process of the particles exhibited two steps when the content of urea in the complex fuel increased from 0 to 1.0. By tailoring the glycine-to-urea ratio in the fuel, an excellent fuel was found and high performance phosphors were obtained.

Nd-doped Y3ScxAl5−xO12(Nd:YSAG) powder were prepared with a chemical combustion method. The powders were nano-sized and had a pure cubic phase when calcined at 900 °C. Transparent Nd:YSAG ceramics with up to 40% scandium substitution for aluminum were successfully fabricated by sintering the powder compact at 1800 °C under H2 atmosphere. The synthesis process and optical properties were investigated in detail. It was found that the light emission intensity at 1064 nm of the Nd:YSAG with 40% scandium substitution for aluminum can be enhanced by 2–3 times over that of Nd:YAG single crystal when pumped with the same 808-nm diode laser. In addition, the material was found to have prolonged fluorescence lifetime. This highly enhanced light emission intensity is fundamentally important for obtaining higher light output together with suppressed self-heating than Nd:YAG ceramic and single crystals.

Transparent ceramic scintillators of La2Hf2O7:Ti4+ were developed by a novel combustion synthesis method. The optical transmittance for a 1.0-mm-thick specimen is about 60% of the incident light, and the x-ray stopping power is also quiet high. The broad emission band centered at 475 nm originates from the oxide-Ti4+ charge-transfer transitions, which renders fast decay time on the order of 10 μs. The highest relative light output has reached about 1.5 times that of Bi4Ge3O12 (BGO) single crystal when excited by 120 kV x-rays.