Composite fibers of poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP,
Mw 1 300 000) and europium complex Eu(BA)
3(TPPO)
2(BA =1-benzoylacetone; TPPO = triphenylphosphine oxide) with strong photoluminescence were preparedby electrospinning. Their luminescent properties were studied in comparison to that of the pure complex. Theresults indicate that due to decreased symmetry in the composites the excitation bands are split into twodifferent components, peaking at ~246 and ~336 nm, respectively, while the ratio of the electronic dipole
5D
0-
7F
2 transitions to the magnetic dipole
5D
0-
7F
1 ones in the emission spectra becomes a little larger. Theroom temperature fluorescence lifetime for the
5D
0 level becomes shorter due to increased radiative andnonradiative transition rates. The temperature dependence of photoluminescence was investigated under325-nm excitation. It is interesting to observe that in the composite fiber the total emission intensity of theEu
3+ ions changes little below 150 K, while in the pure complex the intensity decreases monotonically withincreasing temperature. In addition, the composite fibers exhibit better photostability exposed to ultravioletlights. These novel luminescent composite fibers have potential application in nanodevices.