Crystal growth and characterization of 1-inch GTAGG: Ce single crystal for sub-micron resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray imaging

Abstract A high-performance Ce3+-doped (Gd, Tb)3(Ga, Al)5O12 (GTAGG: Ce) single crystal was engineered and characterized, demonstrating a high application potential for advanced X-ray imaging. A transparent 1-inch diameter single crystal was grown using the Czochralski method, demonstrating a signif...

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Main Authors: Kazuya Omuro, Masao Yoshino, Liudmila Gushchina, Seiichi Yamamoto, Kohei Nakanishi, Kei Kamada, Karol Bartosiewicz, Kyoung Jin Kim, Takahiko Horiai, Rikito Murakami, Akihiro Yamaji, Takashi Hanada, Yuui Yokota, Shunsuke Kurosawa, Yuji Ohashi, Hiroki Sato, Jun Kataoka, Akira Yoshikawa
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-04-01
Series:Scientific Reports
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96031-5
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author Kazuya Omuro
Masao Yoshino
Liudmila Gushchina
Seiichi Yamamoto
Kohei Nakanishi
Kei Kamada
Karol Bartosiewicz
Kyoung Jin Kim
Takahiko Horiai
Rikito Murakami
Akihiro Yamaji
Takashi Hanada
Yuui Yokota
Shunsuke Kurosawa
Yuji Ohashi
Hiroki Sato
Jun Kataoka
Akira Yoshikawa
author_facet Kazuya Omuro
Masao Yoshino
Liudmila Gushchina
Seiichi Yamamoto
Kohei Nakanishi
Kei Kamada
Karol Bartosiewicz
Kyoung Jin Kim
Takahiko Horiai
Rikito Murakami
Akihiro Yamaji
Takashi Hanada
Yuui Yokota
Shunsuke Kurosawa
Yuji Ohashi
Hiroki Sato
Jun Kataoka
Akira Yoshikawa
author_sort Kazuya Omuro
collection DOAJ
description Abstract A high-performance Ce3+-doped (Gd, Tb)3(Ga, Al)5O12 (GTAGG: Ce) single crystal was engineered and characterized, demonstrating a high application potential for advanced X-ray imaging. A transparent 1-inch diameter single crystal was grown using the Czochralski method, demonstrating a significant advancement in large-scale scintillator production. Comprehensive characterization using X-ray diffraction and electron probe micro-analysis confirmed the crystal’s structural integrity. Photoluminescence and radioluminescence spectroscopy demonstrated efficient bidirectional energy transfer between Ce3+ and Tb3+ ions, a critical mechanism enhancing the performance of the scintillator. X-ray imaging tests were performed using crystals with a thickness of 100 μm at the Aichi Synchrotron Radiation Center. Comparison with the industry-standard LuAG: Ce scintillator showed that the GTAGG: Ce crystal produced 2.4 times higher light output and achieved a high spatial resolution of 0.85 μm. The results indicated that GTAGG: Ce is suitable for the next generation of high-performance X-ray imaging detectors in scientific and medical imaging applications.
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spelling doaj-art-ebef844effb04d0d958a390f418775412025-08-20T02:17:57ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-04-0115111010.1038/s41598-025-96031-5Crystal growth and characterization of 1-inch GTAGG: Ce single crystal for sub-micron resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray imagingKazuya Omuro0Masao Yoshino1Liudmila Gushchina2Seiichi Yamamoto3Kohei Nakanishi4Kei Kamada5Karol Bartosiewicz6Kyoung Jin Kim7Takahiko Horiai8Rikito Murakami9Akihiro Yamaji10Takashi Hanada11Yuui Yokota12Shunsuke Kurosawa13Yuji Ohashi14Hiroki Sato15Jun Kataoka16Akira Yoshikawa17Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityC&A CorporationFaculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda UniversityDepartment of Integrated Health Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute of Physics of the Czech Academy of SciencesInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityFaculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda UniversityInstitute for Materials Research, Tohoku UniversityAbstract A high-performance Ce3+-doped (Gd, Tb)3(Ga, Al)5O12 (GTAGG: Ce) single crystal was engineered and characterized, demonstrating a high application potential for advanced X-ray imaging. A transparent 1-inch diameter single crystal was grown using the Czochralski method, demonstrating a significant advancement in large-scale scintillator production. Comprehensive characterization using X-ray diffraction and electron probe micro-analysis confirmed the crystal’s structural integrity. Photoluminescence and radioluminescence spectroscopy demonstrated efficient bidirectional energy transfer between Ce3+ and Tb3+ ions, a critical mechanism enhancing the performance of the scintillator. X-ray imaging tests were performed using crystals with a thickness of 100 μm at the Aichi Synchrotron Radiation Center. Comparison with the industry-standard LuAG: Ce scintillator showed that the GTAGG: Ce crystal produced 2.4 times higher light output and achieved a high spatial resolution of 0.85 μm. The results indicated that GTAGG: Ce is suitable for the next generation of high-performance X-ray imaging detectors in scientific and medical imaging applications.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96031-5RadioluminescenceScintillatorsX-ray imagingComputed tomography
spellingShingle Kazuya Omuro
Masao Yoshino
Liudmila Gushchina
Seiichi Yamamoto
Kohei Nakanishi
Kei Kamada
Karol Bartosiewicz
Kyoung Jin Kim
Takahiko Horiai
Rikito Murakami
Akihiro Yamaji
Takashi Hanada
Yuui Yokota
Shunsuke Kurosawa
Yuji Ohashi
Hiroki Sato
Jun Kataoka
Akira Yoshikawa
Crystal growth and characterization of 1-inch GTAGG: Ce single crystal for sub-micron resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray imaging
Scientific Reports
Radioluminescence
Scintillators
X-ray imaging
Computed tomography
title Crystal growth and characterization of 1-inch GTAGG: Ce single crystal for sub-micron resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray imaging
title_full Crystal growth and characterization of 1-inch GTAGG: Ce single crystal for sub-micron resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray imaging
title_fullStr Crystal growth and characterization of 1-inch GTAGG: Ce single crystal for sub-micron resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray imaging
title_full_unstemmed Crystal growth and characterization of 1-inch GTAGG: Ce single crystal for sub-micron resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray imaging
title_short Crystal growth and characterization of 1-inch GTAGG: Ce single crystal for sub-micron resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray imaging
title_sort crystal growth and characterization of 1 inch gtagg ce single crystal for sub micron resolution synchrotron radiation x ray imaging
topic Radioluminescence
Scintillators
X-ray imaging
Computed tomography
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-96031-5
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