Scintillator Glasses

Abstract

Glasses can be an attractive option for many scintillator applications, due to their unique properties. This chapter introduces the reader to scintillator glasses and examines the basic advantages and disadvantages of glasses in comparison to other scintillator materials. Considerations for the synthesis of optimized scintillator glasses are presented, with an emphasis on compositional effects, including the use of optically active dopants and enriched materials. Basic characterization of glasses is detailed with respect to the scintillation process. Applications for scintillator glasses as they relate to specific forms of ionizing radiation, including α and β particles, electron beams, x-ray and γ radiation, and neutrons, are discussed; the versatility of scintillator glasses is demonstrated by a number of diverse applications including radiation detection, radiography, scanning electron microscopy, and neutron diffraction. The chapter concludes with an outlook on the future of scintillator glasses.