Amorphous Zero-Dimensional Organic Metal Halide Hybrid Scintillators with High Light Yield and Fast Response.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Radiological Physics
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Zero-dimensional (0D) organic metal halide hybrids (OMHHs) are promising scintillation materials.
• Existing 0D OMHH scintillators often have long decay lifetimes and slow, costly crystal growth processes.
• There is a need for faster, more efficient, and scalable X-ray scintillation materials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop high-performance X-ray scintillators using facile, solution-processed amorphous 0D OMHH films.
• To achieve efficient radioluminescence (RL) with short decay lifetimes through molecular sensitization.
• To explore the potential of amorphous OMHHs for scalable and cost-effective X-ray detection.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of amorphous 0D (DMAC-TPP)2ZnBr4 films via solution processing.
• Utilized (4-(9,9-dimethylacridin-10(9H)-yl)phenyl)triphenylphosphonium bromide (DMAC-TPPBr) for molecular sensitization.
• Characterization of optical and scintillation properties, including photoluminescence quantum yield, decay lifetimes, light yield, and limit of detection (LOD).

Main Results:

• Achieved amorphous 0D OMHH films with high photoluminescence quantum yield (∼85%) and short photoluminescence decay lifetime (∼12.5 ns).
• Demonstrated high absolute light yield (∼27,000 photons MeV−1) and a short radioluminescence decay lifetime (∼8.00 ns).
• Obtained a low limit of detection (LOD) of ∼9.00 nGyair s−1, indicating excellent X-ray detection sensitivity.

Conclusions:

• Solution-processed amorphous 0D OMHHs with molecular sensitization enable high-performance X-ray scintillators.
• The developed materials exhibit fast response times and high detection efficiency.
• This approach offers a new pathway for scalable, low-cost, and rapid X-ray detector fabrication.