Optical properties of Ce3+ doped fluorophosphates scintillation glasses

• Optical properties of Ce3+-doped fluorophosphates scintillation glasses have been studied.
• The energy transfer from Gd3+ to Ce3+ ions in fluorophosphates glass was evidenced.
• BaF2 replaces lighter compounds BaO can increase density and improve the light yield.

Fluorophosphates (P2O5–BaO–BaF2–Al2O3–Gd2O3–Ce2O3) glasses with different Gd2O3 and BaF2 concentrations have been prepared by a melt quenching method. The effect of Gd2O3 and BaF2 on the glass performance including the density, absorption as well as luminescence properties under both ultraviolet (UV) and X-ray excitation was studied systematically. Energy transfer from Gd3+ to Ce3+ plays an important role in the scintillation mechanism of these glasses and the optimum concentration of Gd2O3 is found to be approximately 3 mol%. The highest integrated light emission intensity of these glass samples excited by X-ray is 25% of BGO and the decay time constants are in the range of 25–35 ns, much shorter than the 300 ns decay time of BGO. Meanwhile, replacing lighter compound BaO with the BaF2 can increase the density of the glasses and also improve the light yield.