Temperature dependence of YAlO3(Ce) scintillation response to α-ray excitation

The temperature dependence of light yield and decay constants of a cerium-doped yttrium aluminum perovskite [YAP(Ce)] scintillator excited by α-ray irradiation is studied between 290 and 460 K. The scintillation is found to be composed of three decay components with different temperature dependencies. A fast scintillation component with a decay time of ∼6ns is almost independent of temperature; the decay time of the main component decreases from 32 to 26 ns with increase in temperature from 290 to 400 K but increases above 400 K, and a slow component with a decay time larger than 240 ns becomes clearly visible at temperatures below 360 K. The total light yield increases slightly as the temperature increases up to 330 K and decreases above 330 K. These results are essentially interpreted using a two-shallow-trap model proposed by Wojtowicz et al., but an additional mechanism would be required at higher temperatures.