Photoluminescence and scintillation of Sn2+-doped gadolinium aluminum-silicate glasses

The photoluminescence and scintillation properties of Sn2+-doped gadolinium aluminum-silicate Gd2O3–Al2O3–SiO2 (GAS) glasses with Si3N4 as reducing agent were investigated. The glasses showed a wide emission band in the range of 360–730 nm due to the relaxation of S1–S0 and T1-S0 of Sn2+ luminescent centers. The luminescent intensity of Sn2+-doped GAS glasses reaches maximum at 0.3 mol% Sn2+. The lifetimes of the glasses vary between 6 and 12 μs, which related to the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the emission spectra. Different oxides were added to explore the relationship between optical basicity and the luminescent properties of glasses. The addition of B2O3 increases the photoluminescence quantum yield (PL QY) of the glasses, which is due to reduction of the Stokes shift and increment of radiative transition probability in energy level transition. The X-ray induced scintillation luminescence of the glasses were observed and studied.