Thermal neutron imaging with rare-earth-ion-doped LiCaAlF6 scintillators and a sealed 252Cf source

Noriaki Kawaguchi, Takayuki Yanagida, Yutaka Fujimoto, Yuui Yokota, Kei Kamada, Kentaro Fukuda, Toshihisa Suyama, Kenichi Watanabe, Atsushi Yamazaki, Valery Chani, Akira Yoshikawa

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

31 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Thermal neutron imaging with Ce-doped LiCaAlF6 crystals has been performed. The prototype of the neutron imager using a Ce-doped LiCaAlF 6 scintillating crystal and a position sensitive photomultiplier tube (PSPMT) which had 64 multi-channel anode was developed. The Ce-doped LiCaAlF6 single crystal was grown by the Czochralski method. A plate with dimensions of a diameter of 50×2 mm2 was cut from the grown crystal, polished, and optically coupled to PSPMT by silicone grease. The 252Cf source (<1 MBq) was sealed with 43 mm of polyethylene for neutron thermalization. Alphabet-shaped Cd pieces with a thickness of 2 mm were used as a mask for the thermal neutrons. After corrections for the pedestals and gain of each pixel, we successfully obtained two-dimensional neutron images using Ce-doped LiCaAlF6.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)351-354
Number of pages4
JournalNuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Volume652
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2011 Oct 1

Keywords

  • Fluoride
  • Neutron
  • Neutron camera
  • Neutron imaging
  • Neutron scintillator
  • Scintillator
  • Single crystal

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Thermal neutron imaging with rare-earth-ion-doped LiCaAlF6 scintillators and a sealed 252Cf source'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this