A new high sensitivity Na2LiPO4:Eu OSL phosphor

摘要

A new high sensitivity Na2LiPO4:Eu optically stimulated luminescence dosimeter (OSLD) material was prepared by a simple solid-state diffusion method. The formation of the material was confirmed by comparing the experimental data with that available in the literature (JCPDF # 80-2110). The dosimetric properties of the phosphor material using a continuous wave-optically stimulated luminescence (CW-OSL) technique were studied. The material was studied for different concentrations of the impurity and also for different heating treatments. The material doped with 1.0 mol% and annealed at 873 K was found to be the most sensitive. The phosphor was found to have all the good dosimetric characteristics, such as tissue equivalence (low-Z, Z(eff) similar to 10.8), high sensitivity (similar to 3 times less than the commercially available Al2O3:C, Landauer Inc., USA and BeO, Thermalox (R) 995, Materion Inc., USA), low fading (similar to 6.2% in 40 days), wide range of dose response (0.1-1.0 kGy), excellent reusability, easy optical bleaching (annealing) for its reuse, etc., which makes the material useful for dosimetry of high-energy radiations using OSL. The advantages of our OSLD phosphor are the easily available and inexpensive ingredients and a very simple method of preparation that makes it cost effective as compared to the commercially available OSLD phosphors. Also, it is easy to handle, unlike the Thermalox (R) 995 (BeO) dosimeters which are very toxic, and require a special method of preparation and handling.