Crystal growth and optical properties of Ce-doped (La,Y)$_2$Si$_2$O$_7$ single crystal

TL;DR

This study reports the growth and analysis of Ce-doped (La,Y)$_2$Si$_2$O$_7$ single crystals, revealing promising optical and scintillation properties suitable for scintillation applications.

Contribution

First demonstration of Ce-doped (La,Y)$_2$Si$_2$O$_7$ single crystal growth with detailed optical and scintillation characterization.

Findings

Thermal quenching temperature (T50%) is 526 K.

Light output is approximately 12,000 photons/MeV.

Scintillation decay time is about 42 ns.

Abstract

We have grown Ce-doped (La,Y)$_2$Si$_2$O$_7$ single crystal by micro-pulling-down method and investigated its optical and scintillation properties. We have successfully prepared the single crystal with (Ce$_{0.015}$La$_{0.600}$Y$_{0.385}$)$_2$Si$_2$O$_7$ composition. The observed thermal quenching process could be characterized by the quenching temperature (T50%) of 526 K and its activation energy was determined to be 0.62 eV. Further considering the thermal quenching factors, it was found that the thermal quenching was caused by at least the thermal ionization and maybe also by classical thermal quenching. The light output and scintillation decay time were evaluated to be ~12,000 photons/MeV and ~42 ns, respectively. These results indicate that (Ce$_{0.015}$La$_{0.600}$Y$_{0.385}$)$_2$Si$_2$O$_7$ has a great potential for application in scintillation materials.