Radiation resistance of praseodymium-doped aluminum lithium fluorophosphate scintillator glasses for laser fusion experiments

We report the gamma (gamma)-ray radiation resistance of praseodymium (Pr3+)-doped aluminum lithium fluorophosphate scintillator glasses. For its assessment as a scintillator material for laser fusion experiments, a 20Al(PO3)(3)-80LiF-PrF3 (Pr3+-doped APLF) glass was irradiated with gamma-rays from a cobalt-60 (Co-60) source resulting in an absorbed dose of 5.2 kGy. Although gamma-ray-irradiation results in increased absorption due to phosphorus-oxygen hole centers (POHCs) and PO3 (2-) electron centers (PO3 ECs), these radiation-induced defects do not modify the glass emission as both non-irradiated and gamma-ray-irradiated glasses exhibit similar emission spectra and decay times under optical and X-ray excitation. The emission peaks observed also correspond to the different interconfigurational 4f5d & RARR; 4f(2) and intraconfigurational 4f(2) transitions of Pr3+ ions which are neither oxidized nor reduced by irradiation. Our results show that Pr3+-doped APLF glass still maintains its characteristic fast decay time and that gamma-ray irradiation does not affect the glass scintillation mechanisms. (C) 2022 The Japan Society of Applied Physics