Scintillation Properties of Nd3+-Doped Lu2O3 Ceramics in the Visible and Infrared Regions

Nd3+-doped Lu2O3 (Nd: Lu2O3) is a candidate for an infrared scintillator because (i) Lu2O3 has a high density of 9.5 g/cm(3) and a high atomic number of 67 and (ii) Nd3+-doped materials emit in the infrared range and the emission lines from Nd3+ can be used in medical applications since human body has a transparency window between 600 and 1,100 nm. However, it is extremely difficult to fabricate Lu2O3 single crystals using conventional crystal growth methods because of the highmelting point (2,510 degrees C). Using solid-state reactions, it is much easier to fabricate Lu2O3 into a ceramic structure. Therefore, Nd: Lu2O3 transparent ceramics were fabricated using a spark plasma sintering method. This technique is comparatively simple and consumes less time than other methods such as vacuum hot pressing. The scintillation properties and transmittance spectra of the as-produced ceramics were studied in both the visible and infrared regions. Radioluminescence spectra were measured in the range 800-1,200 nm. Nd3+ emission lines were observed in the transparency window of human body. Thus, these ceramic materials could be a candidate for medical imaging applications.