Solution processed high aspect ratio ultra-long vertically well-aligned ZnO nano scintillators for potential X-ray imaging applications

Sinem V Kurudirek; Murat Kurudirek; Anna Erickson; Nolan Hertel; Paul J Sellin; Yauhen Tratsiak; Benjamin J Lawrie; Charles L Melcher; Christopher J Summers

doi:10.1038/s41598-024-61895-6

Solution processed high aspect ratio ultra-long vertically well-aligned ZnO nano scintillators for potential X-ray imaging applications

Sci Rep. 2024 Jul 9;14(1):15803. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-61895-6.

Authors

Sinem V Kurudirek¹, Murat Kurudirek^{2

3

4}, Anna Erickson⁵, Nolan Hertel⁵, Paul J Sellin⁶, Yauhen Tratsiak⁷, Benjamin J Lawrie^{8

9}, Charles L Melcher^{7

10

11}, Christopher J Summers¹²

Affiliations

¹ Nuclear and Radiological Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA. [email protected].
² Nuclear and Radiological Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA. [email protected].
³ Department of Physics, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH, UK. [email protected].
⁴ Department of Electricity and Energy, Technical Sciences Vocational College, Ataturk University, 25240, Erzurum, Turkey. [email protected].
⁵ Nuclear and Radiological Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA.
⁶ Department of Physics, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH, UK.
⁷ Scintillation Materials Research Center, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA.
⁸ Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.
⁹ Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.
¹⁰ Department of Nuclear Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA.
¹¹ Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA.
¹² School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332, USA.

Abstract

We report the photon (PL), electron (CL) and X-ray (XEL) induced luminescence characteristics of high aspect ratio ultra-long (~ 50 µm) ZnO nanorods (NRs) and discuss the potential for fast X-ray detection based on the consistent and efficient visible emission (~ 580 nm) from ZnO NRs. Nanostructured ZnO scintillators were rearranged to form a vertically well-aligned NR design in order to help light absorption and coupling resulting in luminescent and fast scintillation properties. The design of the nanorod array combines the key advantages of a low-cost growth technique together with environmentally friendly and widely available materials. A low temperature hydrothermal method was adopted to grow ZnO NRs in one cycle growth and their structural, optical and X-ray scintillation properties were investigated. The relatively short (~ 10 µm) ZnO NRs emitting in the near-band-edge region were found to be almost insensitive to X-rays. On the other hand, the higher XEL response of long ZnO NRs, which is a key parameter for evaluation of materials to be used as scintillators for high quality X-ray detection and imaging, along with a decay time response in the order of ns confirmed promising scintillation properties for fast and high-resolution X-ray detector applications.

Abstract

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