Phosphor thermography, relying on the temperature dependence of the decay time of photoluminescence from suitable phosphors, provides remote measurement of the temperature of components. Such a phosphor is yttrium oxide doped with europium(Y2O3:Eu).Associated with this phosphor is also a rise time. Demonstrated is that the rise time is also temperature dependent, as a result of known electronic transitions within the Eu ions. For the phosphorY2O3:Eu(3.4 at.&percent;), the rise time is an activated process in the temperature region between 25 and 850 °C. Faster than the decay time, the rise time offers the opportunity for measurement of higher velocity components. ©1998 American Institute of Physics.