Bright Quantum Dot Scintillator for High Frame Rate Imaging

As synchrotron radiation has become a ubiquitous tool across a broad area of science, the DOE supports collaborative research centers for synchrotron radiation science. Recent developments in synchrotron radiation sources have enabled the growth of powerful techniques, such as time-resolved X-ray diffraction studies, for use in understanding dynamic phenomena in materials, including those in biological systems. However, to make the most effective use of synchrotron sources for protein studies, new, efficient, high-throughput detectors are needed to enhance the quality of the molecular model that is the end product of the macromolecular crystallography process. Novel detectors based on new designs of charge coupled devices (CCDs) have been developed, but the performance of these powerful devices is significantly limited by current X-ray-to-light converters, which provide low light conversion efficiency, low X-ray absorption, and a tradeoff between spatial resolution and efficiency. This project will develop a novel semiconductor quantum dot scintillator, which promises to produce as much as a factor of three increase in light yield, high X-ray absorption, fast decay without any afterglow, emission in the wavelength range most suitable for CCD-type devices, and orders of magnitude higher radiation resistance compared to current scintillators. Phase I will demonstrate the feasibility of developing novel quantum dot scintillator films. Commercial Applications and other Benefits as described by the awardee: A Ascintillator with very bright emission, high spatial resolution, high X-ray absorption efficiency, and rapid decay time, with no afterglow, should find use in applications ranging from macromolecular crystallography to medical imaging, and from nondestructive testing to polymer research.