Synthesis and characterization of X-ray nanophosphors using solution-combustion

We investigated nanophosphor materials that exhibit high resolution and emission efficiency for use in X-ray medical imaging. Rare-earth phosphor material has long been used due to its high atomic number and emission efficiency, but these materials tend to exhibit lower resolution and emission efficiency when manufactured in bulk. In this study, we synthesized nanometer-scale phosphors of Gd2O3:Eu and Y2O3:Eu using the solution-combustion method, and we evaluated the dependence of the optical properties of these nanophosphors on europium concentration and synthesis atmosphere. The nanophosphors were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. Characterization of the optical properties revealed that both Gd2O3:Eu and Y2O3:Eu exhibited peak emission intensity at 611 nm, which corresponded to that for commercial bulk phosphors. These results imply that manufacturing nanophosphors can achieve thin and compact displays that have enhanced performance, and that improvements in emission efficiency of nanophosphors could reduce the required patient dose for medical imaging.