Journal
ACS NANO
Volume 11, Issue 6, Pages 6422-6430Publisher
AMER CHEMICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.7b02923
Keywords
quantum dots; surface modification; nanocomposites; FRET; radiation detectors
Categories
Funding
- Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) [HDTRA1-14-1-0032]
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Spectroscopic gamma-photon detection has widespread applications for research, defense, and medical purposes. However, current commercial detectors are either prohibitively expensive for wide deployment or incapable of producing the characteristic gamma photopeak. Here we report the synthesis of transparent, ultra-high-loading (up to 60 wt %) CdxZn1-xS/ZnS core/shell quantum dot/polymer nanocomposite monoliths for gamma scintillation by in situ copolymerization of the partially methacrylate-functionalized quantum dots in a monomer solution. The efficient Forster resonance energy transfer of the high-atomic-number quantum dots to lower band-gap organic dyes enables the extraction of quantum-dot-borne excitons for photon production, resolving the problem of severe light yield deterioration found in previous nanoparticle-loaded scintillators. As a result, the nano composite scintillator exhibited simultaneous improvements in both light yield (visible photons produced per MeV of gamma-photon energy) and gamma attenuation. With these enhancements, a 662 keV Cs-137 gamma photopeak with 9.8% resolution has been detected using a 60 wt % quantum-dot nanocomposite scintillator, demonstrating the potential of such a nanocomposite system in the development of high-performance low-cost spectroscopic gamma detectors.
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