A novel high sensitivity KCaPO4:Ce3+ phosphor for radiation dosimetry

A series of KCa(1-x)PO4:Ce-x(3+) (x = 0.001, 0.005, and 0.01) phosphors were synthesized using a modified solid-state method. The phase purity and surface morphology of the as-prepared material was investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and a scanning electronic microscope (SEM). Additionally, the photoluminescence (PL), thermoluminescence (TL), and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) properties of KCaPO4:Ce phosphor were studied. The XRD pattern of prepared phosphor matched well with its ICDD (International Center for Diffraction Data) file, and the average particle size was calculated using Debye-Scherrer's formula. The PL excitation and emission spectra of prepared KCaPO4:Ce were observed at 320 and 372 nm, respectively. With the increase of Ce3+ concentration, the emission spectra of KCaPO4:Ce3+ phosphors shifted to a longer wavelength. The TL glow curves consist of three overlapping peaks in the temperature range of 50-300 degrees C. The kinetic parameters of the TL curves were calculated using the peak shape method. The TL/OSL sensitivity of prepared KaCaPO(4):Ce3+ phosphor was found to be more than the TL/OSL sensitivity of alpha-Al2O3:C (BARC) phosphor. The prepared phosphors are thus found to have good dosimetric characteristics, such as high sensitivity, linear dose response, excellent reusability and fading, etc. These results make KCaPO4:Ce3+ phosphor an attractive material for radiation dosimetry applications.