High energy radiation detection materials: fabrication and applications

Abstract

ABSTRACT Scientific studies demand high-resolution images and as such digital photography comes into the picture. Imaging for medical science, surveillance, metallographic studies for scientific analysis require high energy radiation. Long exposure to such radiations has harmful biological effects. As such digital imaging requires a very sensitive detector. A sensitive detector is possible only with a sensitive detector material and efficient metal-semiconductor contacts. High-resolution room temperature radiation detection is now possible with the advancement in solid state semiconductor technology. The present paper discusses on semiconductors and scintillators for radiation detection applications. Semiconductor detectors have much better energy resolution than scintillators. Cadmium Zinc Telluride (CZT) is considered the most successful emerging semiconductor material for room temperature radiation detection. Recent methods of fabrication of polycrystalline Cd1-xZnxTe thin films using Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD) under vacuum and air annealing ambiences are presented in this paper.