Characterization of alpha-induced light yield in YAG: Ce3+ nanoscintillator detector for radiation detection applications

Abstract: In this study, we prepared four sample detectors using YAG: Ce3+ nanopowder synthesized at varying activator concentrations (0.1 atm. %, 0.5 atm. %, 1 atm. %, and 2 atm. %) via the sol-gel method. The primary objective was to assess how the Ce3+ content influences the scintillation properties of these samples when subjected to alpha particle excitation. To achieve this, a nuclear instrumentation chain was set-up to measure the pulse height spectra of the radioactive source 241Am, which emits α-particles with an energy of 5.48 MeV. Additionally, we used the GDB-4FF photomultiplier tube (PMT) as the photo-sensor. The scintillation light yield (SLY) was estimated using the comparison method, where the YAG: Ce3+ ceramic scintillator serving as the reference detector. The results demonstrate the influence of Ce3+ activator concentration on optimizing the scintillation properties, with the sample detector designed at 1 atm. % showing the highest scintillation light yield (9900 ph/5.5 MeV-α). These findings contribute to a better understanding of the synthesis and optimization of YAG: Ce3+ nanoscintillators for various applications, including radiation detection and medical imaging. The research highlights the crucial role of activator concentration in governing and enhancing the scintillation properties, offering valuable insights for future advancements in this field.