Study of Deterioration in a Piezoelectric Lead Zirconate Titanate Radiation Detector through Measurement of the Electromechanical Coupling Factor with 400 MeV Zenon Ions

摘要

The variation of the electromechanical coupling factor (ECF) was measured by bombarding a piezoelectric lead zirconate titanate (PZT) element with 400MeV xenon ions. The element was exposed to energies up to 10~4J, during which time the ECF was observed by the resonance method. The ECF gradually decreased with the energy accumulated during irradiation, and its behavior was scaled with an empirical formula. This decrease suggests that the piezoelectric quality deteriorated; hence, the sensitivity of the PZT radiation detector was considered to be degraded as well. The variation ultimately originated in resonance-associated processes. A potential detector suitable for use in severe-radiation environments was discussed.