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Scintillation Detectors of Radiation: Excitations at High Densities and Strong Gradients

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Excitonic and Photonic Processes in Materials

Part of the book series: Springer Series in Materials Science ((SSMATERIALS,volume 203))

Abstract

This chapter discusses the electron-hole recombination processes that occur in the high excitation densities and strong radial gradients of particle tracks in scintillator detectors of radiation. The particle tracks are commonly those of high-energy Compton- or photo-electrons produced in energy-resolving gamma-ray detectors, but could also include those of heavier charged particles such as those following interaction with neutrons. In energy-resolving radiation detectors, intrinsic proportionality of light yield to gamma ray energy or electron energy is an important concern. This chapter gives special emphasis to understanding the physical basis for nonproportionality, while reviewing recent results on fundamental physics of nonlinear quenching, cooling and capture of hot electrons, co-evolving free-carrier and exciton populations, and diffusion in the dense and highly structured excitation landscape of electron tracks. Particular attention is paid to short-pulse laser experiments at Wake Forest University giving data and insight on the above phenomena complementary to more traditional scintillator experiments using gamma-ray or electron excitation. Numerical modeling of diffusion, nonlinear quenching (NLQ), exciton formation, and linear capture processes serves to test and establish links between the laser excitation and particle excitation measurements.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the National Nuclear Security Administration, Office of Nonproliferation Research and Development (NA-22) of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contracts DE-NA0001012 and DE-AC02-05CH11231. The authors wish to thank Jai Singh, Bill Moses, Andrey Vasil’ev, Vitali Nagirnyi, Steve Payne, Daniel Aberg, Babak Sadigh, Sebastien Kerisit, and Fei Gao for helpful discussions. We thank Jaimie Grim for manuscript editing. Partial support was also provided by the US Department of Homeland Security, Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, under National Science Foundation contract ECCS-1348361of the Academic Research Initiative (ARI) program. This support does not constitute an express or implied endorsement on the part of the Government.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, 27106, USA

    R. T. Williams, J. Q. Grim, Qi Li & K. B. Ucer

  2. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA

    G. A. Bizarri

  3. Department of Physics, Fisk University, Nashville, TN, 37208, USA

    A. Burger

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  1. R. T. Williams
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Correspondence to R. T. Williams .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Engineering and IT Faculty of Engn., Health, Science & Env., Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia

    Jai Singh

  2. Department of Physics, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA

    Richard T. Williams

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Williams, R.T., Grim, J.Q., Li, Q., Ucer, K.B., Bizarri, G.A., Burger, A. (2015). Scintillation Detectors of Radiation: Excitations at High Densities and Strong Gradients. In: Singh, J., Williams, R. (eds) Excitonic and Photonic Processes in Materials. Springer Series in Materials Science, vol 203. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-131-2_10

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