Luminescence enhancement in CeF3/ZnO nanocomposites for radiation detection

•Energy transfer from CeF3 to ZnO nanoparticles to enhance ZnO luminescence.•The photoluminescence of ZnO nanoparticles due to energy transfer is 30 times.•The enhancement in X-ray excited luminescence is more than 4 times.•Energy transfer may improve the sensitivity for radiation detection.

ZnO nanoparticles have a strong photoluminescence but weak scintillation luminescence which is an issue for their applications in radiation detection and dosimetry. To enhance their luminescence, ZnO nanoparticles were made into nanocomposites with CeF3 nanoparticles. As a result of energy transfer from CeF3 nanoparticles in the composites, the photoluminescence of ZnO nanoparticles is enhanced 30 times and their X-ray luminescence is enhanced 4 times. The combination of CeF3 and ZnO nanoparticles makes CeF3/ZnO nanocomposites promising scintillators for radiation detection.