Abstract
The absorption spectra of holmium nitrate and erbium nitrate and the difference absorption spectra of their complexes with crown ethers were measured in acetonitrile. The crown ethers used in this study are 12-crown-4 and 15-crown-5. The oscillator strengths for the 4f→4f multiplet-to-multiplet transitions are empirically determined from the absorption spectra in combination with the difference spectra. The intensity parameters Ωλ (λ=2, 4, 6) for the systems are also evaluated by applying the Judd-Ofelt theorem to the observed oscillator strengths. The values of the intensity parameters are compared and discussed to investigate the sensitivity of the intensity parameters to the ligand environment.