Title: Thermoluminescence materials: Preparation techniques, perspectives and applications

Abstract

Luminescent materials have been successfully applied in diverse fields, which have greatly enhanced human life. Thermoluminescence (TL) is the emission of light upon heating a luminescent material after absorbing energy from ionizing radiation. The released energy, in the form of luminescence, and the sensitivity of photon detection makes the TL phenomenon an attractive method to measure small quantities of stored energy. Applications of the TL phenomenon are found not only in dosimetry, research, earth sciences, and age determination of archaeological or geological samples, but also for light-emitting diodes for home lightning, and bio-imaging medicine for cancer cells mapping. The preparation method of the TL material is critical because it controls the final characteristics, and hence the type of applications. The preparation method depends on the physical form required for the TL material, either polycrystalline powder, single crystals, or thin films. The most commonly used methods are precipitation and evaporation for the first, while Czochralski, zone melting, and precipitation from solutions or molten phases (flow method) for the second. For the thin films, the chemical vapor deposition, spray pyrolysis, and sol-gel are the typical techniques. A brief description of the preparation techniques, the analysis methods of the TL curves from the material, and the TL materials applications will be discussed in the conference.