Scintillation of Sol-Gel Derived Lutetium Orthophosphate Doped with Rare Earth Ions

In this paper, the synthesis, the characterization and the scintillation properties of LuPO₄ doped, with several concentrations of Ce³⁺, Eu³⁺ and Tb³⁺ ions, are presented. These materials have been synthesized by sol-gel process. The purity of powders has been verified by X-Ray diffraction and the results confirm the xenotime structure of all the materials. A thermogravimetric analysis allows the obtention of informations on the crystallisation of LuPO₄ and the study of its evolution from the amorphous to crystalline form. The morphology of the powders has been studied by Scanning Electron Microscopy and shows that the powders are constituted of small particles with narrow size distribution. Optical properties have been studied in order to determine the scintillation performances of these materials. The optima are obtained for Ce³⁺, Eu³⁺ and Tb³⁺ concentration of respectively 0.1, 10 and 5% with high scintillation yields. This study thus confirms the potentialities of these materials as scintillators.