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The Bologna Stone: history's first persistent luminescent material

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Author

  • Mika Lastusaari
  • Taneli Laamanen
  • Marja Malkamaki
  • Kari O. Eskola
  • Aleksei Kotlov
  • Stefan Carlson
  • Edmund Welter
  • Hermi F. Brito
  • Marco Bettinelli
  • Hogne Jungner
  • Jorma Holsa
Show all

Summary, in English

In 1603, the Italian shoemaker Vincenzo Cascariolo found that a stone (baryte) from the outskirts of Bologna emitted light in the dark without any external excitation source. However, the calcination of the baryte was needed prior to this observation. The stone later named as the Bologna Stone was among the first luminescent materials and the first documented material to show persistent luminescence. The mechanism behind the persistent emission in this material has remained a mystery ever since. In this work, the Bologna Stone (BaS) was prepared from the natural baryte (Bologna, Italy) used by Cascariolo. Its properties, e. g. impurities (dopants) and their valences, luminescence, persistent luminescence and trap structure, were compared to those of the pure BaS materials doped with different (transition) metals (Cu, Ag, Pb) known to yield strong luminescence. The work was carried out by using different methods (XANES, TL, VUV-UV-vis luminescence, TGA-DTA, XPD). A plausible mechanism for the persistent luminescence from the Bologna Stone with Cu+ as the emitting species was constructed based on the results obtained. The puzzle of the Bologna Stone can thus be considered as resolved after some 400 years of studies.

Department/s

Publishing year

2012

Language

English

Pages

885-890

Publication/Series

European Journal of Mineralogy

Volume

24

Issue

5

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Copernicus GmbH

Topic

  • Natural Sciences
  • Physical Sciences

Keywords

  • Persistent luminescence
  • Bologna Stone
  • baryte
  • copper
  • barium sulphide
  • XANES
  • thermoluminescence
  • thermogravimetry
  • differential thermal
  • analysis
  • X-ray powder diffraction

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1617-4011