Usability of Cr-Doped Alumina in Dosimetry

Abstract

Dosimetry is a widespread material science field dealing with detection and quantification of ionizing radiation using electronic processes in materials. One of the main aspects that determines the performance of dosimeters is the type of defects the material contains. Crystalline lattice imperfections are formed around impurity ions, which may have a smaller or larger size, or different oxidation states compared to host ions. In this study, we show what effects Cr impurities have on the luminescent properties of alumina. Porous Al 2 O 3 : Cr microceramics synthesized using the sol-gel method showed a higher thermoluminescence response than a single crystal ruby. We have found that Cr 2 O 3 concentration of 0.2 wt% was optimal; it yielded the highest X-ray luminescence and thermostimulated luminescence readout of all studied additive concentrations added to alumina during synthesis. Our results show that Cr doped alumina could potentially be used as a promising new material for dosimetry of ionizing radiation.

Re-Evaluation of Chromium Doped Alumina for Dosimetric Applications

“…Our previous research [6] proposed chromium (III) doped alumina as a good candidate for high dose applications. The aim of this research has been to reproduce the previously acquired results with adequately calibrated equipment and expand using the acquired data.…”

“…The same samples as in our previous publication [6] were used, which consisted of a pure alpha phase and did not contain any major disruption in the crystalline lattice due to aforementioned chemical stability. Results gathered from EDX (energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy) were used to evaluate the presence of Cr atoms in the structure.…”

Chromium Luminescence in Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation Coatings on Aluminum Surface

“…Previous research [19][20][21][22] suggests that chromium creates deep charge carrier traps, making it suitable for detection of high dose ionizing radiation used in applications like the calibrators of equipment for radiation sterilization of plant seeds, border control vehicle scanners, power plant energy generators, and other high dose applications. This research will focus on forming α-Al 2 O 3 and γ-Al 2 O 3 crystalline phases on aluminum samples using the PEO process, specifically exploring impurities introduced by a common additive in most alloys-chromium.…”

“…It is important to explore the coating process of the highly luminescent aluminum coating to a point where it can be easily, repeatably mass-produced for ionizing radiation detector usage. Cr-doped alumina has previously been reported [19], however the novelty of this research lies in the optimization of the method of coating as, to our knowledge, the usage of impurities naturally occurring in substrate material to create chromium-doped alumina for dosimetric applications has not yet been explored.…”