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Type of scintillator

  Organic crystal
Organic crystal
  Inorganic crystals
Inorganic crystals
  Organic liquid
Organic liquid
  Plastic
Plastic
  Gas
Gas

There are various kinds of scintillators, and they are used selectively according to the target radiation type and purpose of use. The classification is shown below.

  1. （1）Organic crystal
    • Typical substances are Anthracene and Stilbene
  2. （2）Inorganic crystals
    • There are many kinds of substances, examples of which are crystals of Gadolinium oxysulfide (GOS), Gadolinium silicate (GSO), Cesium iodide (CsI), etc. It is used in the form or crystals or monocrystals created .
  3. （3）Organic liquid
    • Because of liquid form, it is hard to be damaged even by strong irradiation generally.
      A representative form is a solution in which the organic substance such as Diphenyloxazole (PPO) is dissolved in organic solvent such as Naphthalene, Toluene or Xylene.
  4. （4）Plastic
    • A plastic in which the several types of organic luminescent substances are dissolved. It is easy to handle and has good processability. Though it may be suitable for α-rays and β-rays, it may not be suitable for γ-rays.
  5. （5）Gas
    • Such as high purity xenon or high purity helium

The functions required for these scintillator substances are as follows.

  1. 1.Efficiency (sensitivity) to convert radiation energy into detectable scintillation light.
  2. 2.Relation between the radiation energy and the converted light energy (Good linear positive correlation (linearity) is desired.
  3. 3.Short decay time of the scintillation light (afterglow)
  4. 4.Material that does not absorb or scatter the generated scintillation light. (This is related with sensitivity or spatial resolution.）
  5. 5.When the scintillator is in the form of crystal, good optical properties like glass (SiO2), the good workability, and small deliquescence (a phenomenon that it dissolves spontaneously by taking in moisture in the air)

In the next section, we will focus on X-rays scintillators, in which many quantities are used in many applications, and it is also a technical field mainly used in Mitsubishi Chemical’s scintillator products.


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