Lu2 O3 Research Articles

A review: X-ray excited luminescence of gadolinium based optoelectronic phosphors.

X-ray excited fluorescence tomography is an emerging field in the application of bio-imaging and computer tomography. Some rare-earth doped inorganic phosphors like gadolinium oxide (Gd2 O3 ), yttrium oxide (Y2 O3 ), zinc tungstate (ZnWO4 ), cesium fluoride (CsF), barium fluorochloride (BaFCl), lanthanum oxybromide (LaOBr) are shown outstanding applications for X-ray excited phosphors. Gadolinium (Gd)-based inorganic phosphors show extraordinary applications in the field of X-ray chromatography and computer chromatography. In this review article, we discussed the general information about X-ray excited luminescence (XEL) phosphor. Further, we discussed importance, synthesis, structural and photoluminescence (PL) properties of rare-earth (Europium (Eu)) doped Gd2 O3 . To elaborate the scope of the review, we have discussed synthesis, structural and optical properties of lithium (Li) doped Gd2 O3 :Eu. At the end of the review, synthesis, structural and optical properties of Eu doped lutetium oxide (Lu2 O3 ) have been discussed and the results compared with Eu doped Gd2 O3 . The comparison provided the understanding of structural and optical peak position of host and the dopant (Eu).

Density Functional Characterization of the 4f-Relevant Electronic Transitions of Lanthanide-Doped Lu2 O3 Luminescence Materials.

Herein, we present a theoretical study on trivalent-lanthanide-substituted luminescence materials (Lu2 O3 : Ln; with Ln=Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb) by using first-principles calculations based on the Coulomb-corrected density functional theory (DFT+U). Large-scale calculations of electronic the structure are carried out with the goal of pinpointing the 4f-relevant electronic transition rule and optical features of Lu2 O3 : Ln systems. A characteristic double "zigzag" pattern for Ln3+ and Ln2+ energy levels is observed. Accordingly, four types of electric-dipole allowed transition modes are predicted in the lanthanide-doped Lu2 O3 family, with Lu2 O3 : Eu and Lu2 O3 : Yb showing superior absorption features. Finally, this 4f-controlled electronic transition image provides useful guidance for designing new luminescence materials with desired properties.

Dual-Wavelength Temporal Dynamics of a Gain-Switched 2-μm Tm3+:Lu2O3 Ceramic Laser

We provide a detailed experimental investigation of the energy efficiency and rich temporal dynamics of a gain-switched 2-μm Tm3+:Lu2O3 ceramic laser pumped near 800 nm. A tunable Ti3+:sapphire laser was used to determine the full excitation spectrum and the optimum pumping bands for the 1.5% Tm3+:Lu2O3 ceramic gain medium. These bands were centered at 774, 796, and 811 nm. The highest output pulse energy was obtained when the pump wavelength was set to 796 nm. In the experiments, a free-running x-cavity was used to investigate the energy efficiency of the Tm 3+:Lu2O3 ceramic laser. Extracavity grating-dispersed output and prism-tuned resonator were used to further assess the role of cross-relaxation for the 1.5% Tm3+:Lu2 O3 ceramic. Finally, we demonstrate that as the pump energy was increased, a transition occurred from single-wavelength output (2068 nm) to dual-wavelength multipulse output (2068 and 1968 nm). We performed systematic temporal and spectral characterization measurements by using the free-running resonator, extracavity-grating-dispersed laser output, and prism-tuned resonator to investigate how the laser pulses at 1968 and 2068 nm evolved in time. A plane-wave rate equation model was further used to investigate the temporal dynamics of the Tm3+:Lu2O3 ceramic laser and provided predictions in qualitative agreement with experimental data.

In silico optimization of radioluminescence microscopy.

Radioluminescence microscopy (RLM) is a high-resolution method for imaging radionuclide uptake in live cells within a fluorescence microscopy environment. Although RLM currently provides sufficient spatial resolution and sensitivity for cell imaging, it has not been systematically optimized. This study seeks to optimize the parameters of the system by computational simulation using a combination of numerical models for the system's various components: Monte-Carlo simulation for radiation transport, 3D optical point-spread function for the microscope, and stochastic photosensor model for the electron multiplying charge coupled device (EMCCD) camera. The relationship between key parameters and performance metrics relevant to image quality is examined. Results show that Lu2 O3 :Eu yields the best performance among 5 different scintillator materials, and a thickness: 8 μm can best balance spatial resolution and sensitivity. For this configuration, a spatial resolution of ~20 μm and sensitivity of 40% can be achieved for all 3 magnifications investigated, provided that the user adjusts pixel binning and electron multiplying (EM) gain accordingly. Hence the primary consideration for selecting the magnification should be the desired field of view and magnification for concurrent optical microscopy studies. In conclusion, this study estimates the optimal imaging performance achievable with RLM and promotes further development for more robust imaging of cellular processes using radiotracers.

Strain dynamics during La2O3/Lu2O3 superlattice and alloy formation

The dynamics of strain relaxation and intermixing during molecular beam epitaxy of La2O3 and Lu2O3 superlattices and alloys consisting of both binaries on Si(111) have been studied by real-time in situ grazing incidence x-ray diffraction and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The presence of both hexagonal and cubic polymorphs of La2O3 influences the epitaxial formation within the superlattice. The process of strain relaxation is closely related to the presence of a (La,Lu)2O3 alloy adopting a cubic symmetry. It is formed by interdiffusion of La and Lu atoms reducing internal lattice mismatch within the superlattice. An interface thickness dominated by interdiffusion regions of about 3 monolayers is determined by high-angle annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy.

Bright Lu2O3:Eu Thin‐Film Scintillators for High‐Resolution Radioluminescence Microscopy

The performance of a new thin-film Lu2 O3 :Eu scintillator for single-cell radionuclide imaging is investigated. Imaging the metabolic properties of heterogeneous cell populations in real time is an important challenge with clinical implications. An innovative technique called radioluminescence microscopy has been developed to quantitatively and sensitively measure radionuclide uptake in single cells. The most important component of this technique is the scintillator, which converts the energy released during radioactive decay into luminescent signals. The sensitivity and spatial resolution of the imaging system depend critically on the characteristics of the scintillator, that is, the material used and its geometrical configuration. Scintillators fabricated using conventional methods are relatively thick and therefore do not provide optimal spatial resolution. A thin-film Lu2 O3 :Eu scintillator is compared to a conventional 500 μm thick CdWO4 scintillator for radioluminescence imaging. Despite its thinness, the unique scintillation properties of the Lu2 O3 :Eu scintillator allow us to capture single-positron decays with fourfold higher sensitivity, which is a significant achievement. The thin-film Lu2 O3 :Eu scintillators also yield radioluminescence images where individual cells appear smaller and better resolved on average than with the CdWO4 scintillators. Coupled with the thin-film scintillator technology, radioluminescence microscopy can yield valuable and clinically relevant data on the metabolism of single cells.

Luminescent Properties of Lu2 O3:Eu3+ Nanophosphors Synthesized by Using Acid-Catalyzed Sol-Gel Method

Luminescent Properties of Lu2 O3:Eu3+ Nanophosphors Synthesized by Using Acid-Catalyzed Sol-Gel Method

Phase stabilization in transparent Lu2O3:Eu ceramics by lattice expansion

Gadolinium lutetium oxide transparent ceramics doped with europium (Gd,Lu)2O3:Eu were fabricated via vacuum sintering and hot isostatic pressing (HIP). Nano-scale starting powder with the composition GdxLu1.9−xEu0.1O3 (x=0, 0.3, 0.6, 0.9, 1.0, and 1.1) were uniaxially pressed and sintered under high vacuum at 1625°C to obtain ∼97% dense structures with closed porosity. Sintered compacts were then subjected to 200MPa argon gas at temperatures between 1750 and 1900°C to reach full density. It was observed that a small portion of the Eu3+ ions were exsolved from the Lu2O3 cubic crystal lattice and concentrated at the grain boundaries, where they precipitated into a secondary monoclinic phase creating optical scattering defects. Addition of Gd3+ ions into the Lu2O3 cubic lattice formed the solid solution (Gd,Lu)2O3:Eu and stretched the lattice parameter allowing the larger Eu3+ ions to stay in solid solution, reducing the secondary phase and improving the transparency of the ceramics. Excess gadolinium, however, resulted in a complete phase transformation to monoclinic at pressures and temperatures sufficient for densification. Light yield performance was measured and all samples show equal amounts of the characteristic Eu3+ luminescence, indicating gadolinium addition had no adverse effect. This material has potential to improve the performance of high energy radiography devices.

Experimental comparison of high-density scintillators for EMCCD-based gamma ray imaging

Detection of x-rays and gamma rays with high spatial resolution can be achieved with scintillators that are optically coupled to electron-multiplying charge-coupled devices (EMCCDs). These can be operated at typical frame rates of 50 Hz with low noise. In such a set-up, scintillation light within each frame is integrated after which the frame is analyzed for the presence of scintillation events. This method allows for the use of scintillator materials with relatively long decay times of a few milliseconds, not previously considered for use in photon-counting gamma cameras, opening up an unexplored range of dense scintillators. In this paper, we test CdWO4 and transparent polycrystalline ceramics of Lu2O3:Eu and (Gd,Lu)2O3:Eu as alternatives to currently used CsI:Tl in order to improve the performance of EMCCD-based gamma cameras. The tested scintillators were selected for their significantly larger cross-sections at 140 keV (99mTc) compared to CsI:Tl combined with moderate to good light yield. A performance comparison based on gamma camera spatial and energy resolution was done with all tested scintillators having equal (66%) interaction probability at 140 keV. CdWO4, Lu2O3:Eu and (Gd,Lu)2O3:Eu all result in a significantly improved spatial resolution over CsI:Tl, albeit at the cost of reduced energy resolution. Lu2O3:Eu transparent ceramic gives the best spatial resolution: 65 µm full-width-at-half-maximum (FWHM) compared to 147 µm FWHM for CsI:Tl. In conclusion, these ‘slow’ dense scintillators open up new possibilities for improving the spatial resolution of EMCCD-based scintillation cameras.

Structural and Electrical Characteristics of $ \hbox{Lu}_{2}\hbox{O}_{3}$ Dielectric Embedded MIM Capacitors for Analog IC Applications

In this study, we develop a high-performance metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor using a high- <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">k</i> Lu <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> O <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> amorphous film for radio-frequency and mixed-signal applications. The Ni/ Lu <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> O <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> /TaN capacitor exhibited a high capacitance density, a low leakage-current density, and a relatively low quadratic voltage coefficient of capacitance. The leakage current at the low electric field (<; 1.4 MV/cm) was dominated by the Schottky emission, whereas the Poole-Frenkel effect plays in the high electric field. In addition, the effects of constant voltage stress on leakage current and voltage linearity were comprehensively investigated, and excellent device reliability was also demonstrated. The Ni/ Lu <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> O <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> /TaN MIM capacitor appears to be very promising for future IC technologies.