Intrinsically activated TlCaCl3: A new halide scintillator for radiation detection

A new intrinsically activated TlCaCl3 scintillator has been developed by conventional Bridgman technique. The emission spectra under X-ray excitation show broad band spanning in the range of 350-550 nm having maximum emission at 425 nm. Light output of 30,600 ± 3060 ph/MeV and energy resolution of 5% (FWHM) is recorded under 662 keV γ-rays excitation from a 137Cs source. The scintillation decay time is bi-exponential with components of 317 ns and 727 ns having total light yield contribution of 44% and 56%, respectively. Due to high effective Z-number (Zeff = 65.5) than the widely used commercial scintillators such as NaI: Tl (Zeff = 50.8) and CsI: Tl (Zeff = 54), the grown crystal will provide higher detection efficiency for X- and γ-rays. The measured scintillation properties showed that TlCaCl3 could be the best candidate for the detection of X- and γ-rays in different applications.