PFI-TT: Scalable solid state neutron and gamma detectors for diverse industrial applications

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Partnerships for Innovation - Technology Translation (PFI-TT) project is to develop low cost, high performance, portable radiation detectors that have applications ranging from homeland security to medical treatment. With this technology, it may be possible for police officers, fire firefighters and first responders to monitor for the presence of Medical staff could monitor the production of neutrons and γ-rays during heavy ion cancer treatments to collect data on the long-term impact of secondary radiation.

Just as important as the technology development is the talent development that will take place during this project. This project will support one graduate student and one postdoctoral researcher that will be trained in the area of radiation detectors, nuclear electronics, and prototype development and entrepreneurship. The design and use of radiation detectors and their associated electronics are quickly becoming lost skill sets, so this PFI project also addresses workforce development in needed areas.

The proposed project seeks to demonstrate low cost, high count rate, γ-ray detectors based on halide inorganic perovskites. These devices will be integrated with neutron detection / amplification schemes to enable simultaneous neutron and γ-ray detectors. A traditional γ-ray spectroscopic system consists of a detector, either a scintillator and a photomultiplier tube or a high purity Ge solid state semiconductor detector, a pre-amplifier, an amplifier, an analog-to-digital converter and a multichannel analyzer.

Although effective, these systems are expensive, lack ruggedness and portability, and are not easily scaled. The main goal of this PFI-TT project is to demonstrate and integrate CsPbX3 (X=Cl, Br, I or any combination) semiconductor single crystals as the material of choice for γ-ray sensing and combine neutron and gamma-ray detection in a prototype using the same charge amplification scheme, which reduces the overall cost of the system while enabling rugged and scalable radiation sensing.

The gamma-ray detection approach moves away from the traditional use of perovskite as scintillators, but instead uses the materials as the active sensing element in solid-state charge and neutral particle detection. Composition, electrical properties, and device engineering are some of the unknowns to be elucidated during the program.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.