Development of nanocomposite scintillators for use in high-energy physics

TL;DR

This paper explores the development of nanocomposite scintillators, specifically semiconductor nanocrystals, for high-energy physics applications, comparing their performance to conventional scintillators in calorimetry tests.

Contribution

It presents the first comparative study of nanocomposite versus conventional scintillators in high-energy particle detection and evaluates their potential for calorimetry.

Findings

Nanocomposite scintillators show promising light emission properties.

Performance comparison with conventional scintillators demonstrates potential advantages.

Initial tests indicate suitability for high-energy physics calorimetry.

Abstract

Semiconductor nanocrystals (quantum dots) are light emitters with high quantum yield that are relatively easy to manufacture. There is therefore much interest in their possible application for the development of high-performance scintillators for use in high-energy physics. However, few previous studies have focused on the response of these materials to high-energy particles. To evaluate the potential for the use of nanocomposite scintillators in calorimetry, we are performing side-by-side tests of fine-sampling shashlyk calorimeter prototypes with both conventional and nanocomposite scintillators using electron and minimum-ionizing particle beams, allowing direct comparison of the performance obtained.