Thermoluminescence of Novel Zinc Oxide Nanophosphors Obtained by Glycine-Based Solution Combustion Synthesis

Abstract

High-dose thermoluminescence dosimetry properties of novel zinc oxide nanophosphors synthesized by a solution combustion method in a glycine-nitrate process are presented for the very first time in this work. Sintered particles with sizes ranging between ~500 nm and ~2 μm were obtained by annealing the synthesized ZnO at 900°C during 2 h in air. X-ray diffraction patterns indicate the presence of the ZnO hexagonal phase, without any remaining nitrate peaks observed. Thermoluminescence glow curves of ZnO obtained after being exposed to beta radiation consists of two maxima: one located at ~149°C and another at ~308°C, the latter being the dosimetric component of the curve. The integrated TL fading displays an asymptotic behavior for times longer than 16 h between irradiation and the corresponding TL readout, as well as a linear behaviour of the dose response without saturation in the studied dose interval (from 12.5 up to 400 Gy). Such features place synthesized ZnO as a promising material for high-dose radiation dosimetry applications.