Synthesis and thermoluminescence characterization of Na6Mg(SO4)4:RE (REÂ =Â Ce, Tb) phosphors

Thermoluminescence (TL) properties of sulfate-based phosphors activated by different rare earths have received tremendous attention to the field of radiation dosimetry. Those TL materials based on CaSO4 have been widely applied for medical and environmental dosimetry. Taking this fact into account we have synthesized Na6Mg(SO4)4 doped with Ce and Tb by wet chemical method. The prepared phosphor was characterized by XRD, FTIR, photoluminescence (PL) and thermoluminescence. For TL study, the phosphor is irradiated with γ-rays from 60Co source. For studying luminescence properties, the prepared phosphor was annealed at different temperatures and effects of these annealing temperatures on Na6Mg(SO4)4 samples are investigated and quantified. The changes in the glow curve and PL emission spectrum are also investigated as a function of annealing temperature and the annealing temperature was optimized. For calculation of trapping parameters various methods such as peak shape (PS) method, initial rise (IR) method, various heating rate (VHR) method, and computerized glow curve deconvolution (CGCD) are employed.