Various scintillation crystals. The second crystal from the left is targeted by an UV source and shines brightly in visible light. A scintillator (/ ˈsɪntɪleɪtər / SIN-til-ay-ter) is a material that exhibits scintillation, the property of luminescence, [1] when excited by ionizing radiation.

Scintillation crystals are used in detectors to convert X-rays or gamma rays into light pulses that are subsequently detected by either a Photomultiplier Tube (PMT) or a Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM).

Scintillation is an example of luminescence, whereby light of a characteristic spectrum is emitted following the absorption of radiation. The scintillation process can be summarized in three main stages: conversion, transport and energy transfer to the luminescence center, and luminescence.

Aug 10, 2017 · At PhysicsOpenLab we use many scintillation crystals, mainly coupled with PMTs or SiPMS, to detect particles or radiation. In this post we want to describe the scintillation crystals we normally use in our detectors.

A scintillation crystal absorbs gamma photons by one or more collision processes and converts some of their energy into visible light and ultraviolet (UV) photons. This is done through a process know as scintillation. In a sense, the crystal acts as a wavelength shifter.

Scintillation crystals are the excellent materialis for conversion of ionizing radiation into light energy.

Jul 11, 2004 · Scintillation is an example of radioluminescence wherein the absorption of high-energy radiation or particles leads to observable light. Scintillators may be organic and inorganic solids, liquids, and gases; here we limit the discussion to inorganic solid-state detector materials for medical imaging using X-rays and gamma rays.

Inorganic scintillation crystals meet the requirements of stopping power and optical transparency, their densities ranging from roughly 3 to 9 g/cm3 makes them very suitable to absorb penetrating radiation (γ-rays).

Inorganic scintillators are usually crystals grown in high-temperature furnaces. They include lithium iodide (LiI), sodium iodide (NaI), cesium iodide (CsI), and zinc sulfide (ZnS). NaI (Tl) (thallium-doped sodium iodide) is the most widely used scintillation material.

Jul 31, 2022 · Scintillation crystals are an important part of PET scanners; they can convert γ photons into fluorescent photons to obtain their energy, time, and position information. Currently, an important research goal in PET is to find scintillation crystals with better performance.