Thermoluminescence properties of ZnO nanophosphors after beta irradiation for dosimetry applications

In this study, zinc oxide samples were prepared using the co-precipitation method. The crystalline size of the prepared ZnO nanophosphors was calculated by using the XRD pattern and (TEM). Furthermore, SEM-EDX analysis was carried out to characterize the prepared ZnO. ZnO samples were examined under screening on different types of filters. The ZnO underwent varying heating conditions prior to the TL measurement in order to identify which heating duration is most suitable for this study. CGCD indicated ten distinct trapping levels with activation energies ranging from 1.06 to 2.28 eV, revealing an overlapping trap structure. The TL trapping parameters of prepared nanophosphors were evaluated using three different methods and showed good agreement between the different methods. While the whole dose region of 0.11–165 Gy has been scored within the described framework, the linear part of the regression for most of the peaks is limited to 110 Gy, beyond which either nonlinearities or saturation dominate the response. By reusing ZnO nanophosphors nine times, the same response to TL was shown to a very similar degree. It was also found that the minimum detectable dose was 279 mGy and that sensitivity was approximately similar in the range of 0.2 to 20 Gy. Measurements showed that zinc oxide prepared by the co-precipitation method, is a good phosphor for dosimetry applications and recommended its application in dosimetry for medical applications.