Wavelength-independent light extraction enhancement by nanostructures for scintillators with broadband emission

Abstract

Conventional photonic crystals with a single period are capable of enhancing the light output of scintillators based on the partial elimination of internal total reflection. However, the enhancement often comes along with a strong wavelength dependence, leading to a severe spectrum distortion. Here, the nanostructures for wavelength-independent light extraction enhancement, namely, multi-size spherical nanostructures, are designed and fabricated. The nanostructure can efficiently outcouple the scintillation light and at the same time significantly weaken the wavelength dependence. The light output of the scintillators with the nanostructures obtains noticeable enhancement with a ratio of 1.7, having weak wavelength dependence, which is in contrast to the enhancement by single-periodic photonic crystals. In addition to the applications on the scintillators, we anticipate that these wavelength-independent light output enhancement schemes could be expanded to other important fields, such as white light-emitting diodes and display devices.