Solid-State Neutron Detection with LiZnP

50983-98-I Solid-State Neutron Detection with LiZnP--Radiation Monitoring Devices, Inc., 44 Hunt Street, Watertown, MA 02172-4624; (617) 926-1167 Mr. Kani S. Shah, Principal Investigator Dr. Gerald Entine, Business Official DOE Grant No. DE-FG02-98ER82651 Amount: $75,000 Neutron detection and monitoring is universally employed in nuclear physics laboratories to obtain both primary experimental data and to set controls on research accelerators and reactors. Currently, gas counters or scintillators are used to detect thermal neutrons; however, their large, cumbersome size limits their range of applications, particularly in retrofitting existing experiments or where large numbers of detectors are desirable. A thermal neutron detector based small semiconductor charged particle or x-ray detectors would be a very desirable alternative or accompaniment to the larger existing detectors. A novel semiconductor, lithium-zinc-phosphorus (LiZnP) will be developed to fill this need. The overall project would involve optimizing the crystal growth of LiZnP, developing fabrication procedures, and repetitive material/electrical/radiation testing. Phase I will establish the basic method of growing the crystals followed by various characterizations to understand the variability of detector parameters on growth conditions. Phase II would continue with further improvements in growth and fabrication, leading to increases in both size and yield. Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: The resulting detectors would be compact, highly sensitive, rugged, and have low power requirements. Nuclear physicists would unquestionably find many applications for them in their labs. Additionally, they would be beneficial to radiation safety, non-proliferation of special materials, environmental surveys, oil exploration and other research areas where neutrons are a valuable tool (e.g. material science, experimental cancer therapies)._