An object of the present invention is to provide an inorganic
phosphor, particularly, an oxynitride
phosphor containing alkaline earths which has a higher luminance than that of conventional
sialon phosphors activated with a
rare earth, and is chemically stable.By baking a
raw material mixture containing at least
silicon nitride powder, M element containing inorganic substance, and A element containing inorganic substance at a temperature range of 1200° C. to 2200° C. in a
nitrogen atmosphere, a
phosphor comprising an
inorganic composition containing at least M Element, A Element,
silicon,
oxygen, and
nitrogen (wherein M Element is one or two or more elements selected from the group consisting of Mn, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, and Yb, A Element is one or two or more elements selected from the group consisting of Mg, Ca, Sr, and Ba) and containing at least
crystal having the same
crystal structure as that of A2Si5N8 and A element-containing
crystal is obtained.