Introducing a novel beta-ray sensor based on polycarbonate/bismuth oxide nanocomposite

In this research, for the first time, the polycarbonate/bismuth oxide (PC-Bi₂O₃) composite was studied as a beta-ray sensor using a pure beta-emitter ⁹⁰Sr source. Firstly, the range and stopping power of the electrons in the composite at various loadings of 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 wt% were calculated using the ESTAR program. Results of simulation demonstrated that the concentration of the heavy metal oxide particles into the polymer matrix played an important role in evaluating the range and stopping power of the electrons in the composite. Secondly, at the experimental phase, the pure Polycarbonate and 50 wt% PC-Bi₂O₃ nanocomposite with dimensions of 4 × 4 × 0.1 cm³ were prepared and irradiated by ⁹⁰Sr. Also, current-voltage (I-V) plot exhibited linear response ranging from 100 to 1000 V at the fixed source-to-surface distance (SSD). Then the amount of electric current as the sensor response was measured in various dose rates at the fixed voltage of 400 V for the pure Polycarbonate and 50 wt% PC-Bi₂O₃ nanocomposite using an electrometer, in which results showed that the sensitivities were found as 20.3, and 33.3 nC mSv^-1 cm^-3, respectively. This study showed that this composite could serve as a novel beta-ray sensor.