Comparative studies on OSL properties of LiMgPO4:Tb,B powders and crystals

Application of LiMgPO4 crystal for proton beam quality control in radiotherapy

The radioluminescence (RL) emitted by LiMgPO4 detector under proton beam irradiation was investigated in real time at the radiotherapy facility in the Institute of Nuclear Physics Polish Academy of Sciences in Krakow. The facility uses protons accelerated by the AIC-144 isochronous cyclotron up to the energy of 60 MeV. The measurements of RL were carried out using a remote optical fiber device with a luminophore detector and photomultiplier located at opposite ends of the optical fiber. A thin slice of LiMgPO4 doped with Tm (1.2 mol%) crystal was exposed to the proton beam. The tested detector allowed for the measurement of proton beam current, flux fluence and determination of proton beam time structure parameters. The investigation of LiMgPO4 crystal showed its high sensitivity, fast reaction time to irradiation and possibility of application as the detector for control of proton beam parameters.

Dosimetric and spectroscopic study of LiMgPO4 doped with Tm3+ and Er3

Olivine-type phosphate LiMgPO₄ doped with rare earth elements is considered a novel dosimetric material with excellent performance that is suitable for thermoluminescence (TL) and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) measurements. Novel LiMgPO₄:Tm,Er samples were synthesized by a high-temperature solid-state reaction method. A detailed study of the TL and OSL of the samples was performed using β-ray irradiation and X-ray-excited optical luminescence (XEOL) spectroscopy. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to predict the preferential positions of thulium and erbium, and photoluminescence (PL) spectra and TL 3D spectra were analyzed. The DFT calculation results show that Mg is preferentially replaced by Tm/Er in the LiMgPO₄ system. The PL/TL3D/XEOL spectra of the samples are dominated by the characteristic luminescence of Tm³⁺, and the OSL decay curve of photoluminescence has fast and slow decay components with decay constants of 5 s and 42 s, respectively. The TL and XEOL results show that LiMgPO₄:Tm,Er has strong emission signals under different types of radiation rays. The PL/TL3D/XEOL spectral results show that Er³⁺ has no radiative excitation, but Tm³⁺ has strong luminescence, such that the sample still emits strong TL and PL signals. Two TL emission peaks occur at approximately 120 °C and 300 °C, where the high-temperature peak is significantly more intense than the low-temperature peak, promoting the stability of the TL and OSL signals of the samples. The TL curve consists of 6 general TL dynamic peaks. The nonlinear parameters of the TL dose response are R = 0.08 and D ₀ = 479 Gy, and the OSL dose response is linear in the range of 0.2-1000 Gy. The TL and OSL signals of the LiMgPO₄:Tm,Er phosphor have good repeatability. Therefore, the LiMgPO₄:Tm,Er phosphor can be used for radiation dose measurement.

3D Dosimetry Based on LiMgPO4 OSL Silicone Foils: Facilitating the Verification of Eye-Ball Cancer Proton Radiotherapy

A direct verification of the three-dimensional (3D) proton clinical treatment plan prepared for tumor in the eyeball, using the Eclipse Ocular Proton Planning system (by Varian Medical Systems), has been presented. To achieve this, a prototype of the innovative two-dimensional (2D) circular silicone foils, made of a polymer with the embedded optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) material in powder form (LiMgPO₄), and a self-developed optical imaging system, consisting of an illuminating light source and a high-sensitive CCD camera has been applied. A specially designed lifelike eyeball phantom has been used, constructed from 40 flat sheet LMP-based silicone foils stacked and placed together behind a spherical phantom made by polystyrene, all to reflect the curvature of the real eyeball. Two-dimensional OSL signals were captured and further analyzed from each single silicone foil after irradiation using a dedicated patient collimator and a 58.8 MeV modulated proton beam. The reconstructed 3D proton depth dose distribution matches very well with the clinical treatment plan, allowing for the consideration of the new OSL system for further 3D dosimetry applications within the proton radiotherapy area.

Uniformity of Thermoluminescence and Optically Stimulated Luminescence Signals Over the Length of Doped LiMgPO4 Crystal Rods Grown by Micro-Pulling-Down Method

The purpose of this work was to systematically assess the distribution of thermoluminescence (TL) and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) properties along the length of crystals grown by the micro-pulling-down method, in relation to the microstructure and distribution of activators. We analyzed lithium magnesium phosphate (LiMgPO₄; LMP) crystals doped with terbium (Tb; 0.8 mol%) or with a combination of thulium (Tm; 0.8 mol% or 1.2 mol%) and boron (B; 10 mol%). Crystals of several centimeters in length and 3 mm in diameter were cut into 20-40 slices, depending on length. For each sample, TL glow curves and OSL decay curves were examined. Optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were used to assess the microstructure and elemental composition of several selected samples. Two-dimensional TL readouts were performed to identify the areas with higher and lower signal emission. Our study showed that there may be significant differences not only in LMP sensitivity along the crystal's axis but also on the surface of the slice. The distribution of activators varies depending on the type of crystals and strongly affects luminescence properties.

Intrinsic and Dopant-Related Luminescence of Undoped and Tb Plus Tm Double-Doped Lithium Magnesium Phosphate (LiMgPO4, LMP) Crystals

In this work, the luminescence properties of undoped, Tm³⁺ doped, and Tb³⁺ plus Tm³⁺ double-doped crystals of the lithium magnesium phosphate (LiMgPO₄, LMP) compound were investigated. The crystals under study were grown from melt using the micro-pulling-down method. The intrinsic and dopant-related luminescence of these crystals were studied using cathodo-, radio-, photo-, and thermoluminescence methods. Double doping with Tb³⁺ and Tm³⁺ ions was analyzed as these dopants are expected to exhibit an opposite trapping nature, namely to create the hole and electron-trapping sites, respectively. The spectra measured for the undoped samples revealed three prominent broad emission bands with maxima at around 3.50, 2.48, and 1.95 eV, which were associated with intrinsic structural defects within the studied compound. These were expected due to the anion vacancies forming F⁺-like centers while trapping the electrons. The spectra measured for Tb and Tm double-doped crystals showed characteristic peaks corresponding to the 4f–4f transitions of these dopants. A simplified model of a recombination mechanism was proposed to explain the temperature dependence of the measured thermally stimulated luminescence spectra. It seems that at low temperatures (below 300 °C), the charge carriers were released from ⁵D₃-related Tb³⁺ trapping sites and recombination took place at Tm-related sites, giving rise to the characteristic emission of Tm³⁺ ions. At higher temperatures, above 300 °C, the electrons occupying the Tm³⁺-related trapping sites started to be released, and recombination took place at ⁵D₄-related Tb³⁺ recombination centers, giving rise to the characteristic emission of Tb³⁺ ions. The model explains the temperature dependence observed for the luminescence emission from double-doped LiMgPO₄ crystals and may be fully applicable for the consideration of emissions of other double-doped compounds.

Unusual intrinsic thermoluminescence in LiMgPO4:Er

Enhancement of stimulated luminescence in LiMgPO₄ due to energy transfer from Er³⁺ to the optical matrix.

Thermoluminescence Enhancement of LiMgPO4 Crystal Host by Tb3+ and Tm3+ Trivalent Rare-Earth Ions Co-doping

We investigated the influence of terbium and thulium trivalent rare-earth (RE) ions co-doping on the luminescent properties enhancement of LiMgPO₄ (LMP) crystal host. The studied crystals were grown from the melt by micro-pulling-down (MPD) technique. Luminescent properties of the obtained crystals were investigated by thermoluminescence (TL) method. The most favorable properties and the highest luminescence enhancement were measured for Tb and Tm double doped crystals. A similar luminescence level can be also obtained for Tm, B co-doped samples. In this case, however, the low-temperature TL components have a significant contribution. The measured luminescent spectra showed a typical emission of Tb³⁺ and Tm³⁺ ions of an opposite trapping nature, namely the holes and electron-trapping sites, respectively. The most prominent transitions of ⁵D₄ → ⁷F₃ (550 nm for Tb³⁺) and ¹D₂ → ³F₄ (450 nm for Tm³⁺) were observed. It was also found that Tb³⁺ and Tm³⁺ emissions show temperature dependence in the case of double doped LMP crystal sample, which was not visible in the case of the samples doped with a single RE dopant. At a low temperature range (up to around 290 °C) Tm³⁺ emission was dominant. At higher temperatures, the electrons occupying Tm³⁺ sites started to be released giving rise to emissions from Tb-related recombination centers, and emissions from Tm³⁺ centers simultaneously decreased. At the highest temperatures, emission took place from Tb³⁺ recombination centers, but only from deeper ⁵D₄ level-related traps which had not been emptied at a lower temperature range.