LUMINANCE

LUMINescent gArNet CEramics and nanocrystals: material properties understanding and scintillation applications – LUMINANCE

Principal Investigator: Jan Hostaša
Involved Personnel: Francesco Picelli
Starting date: 26/10/2023
Duration: 24 mesi
Total Funding: 203.915,00 €
Call: PRIN – PROGETTI DI RICERCA DI RILEVANTE INTERESSE NAZIONALE; cod. progetto 2022E42PMA
CNR-ISSMC Role: Partner
Project Coordinator: Roberto Lorenzi (Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca), Jan Hostaša (co-PI)
Consortium: Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, CNR-ISSMC

Ionizing radiation, such as X-rays and γ photons, is fundamental in medical bioimaging. Scintillating materials like rare-earth doped garnets absorb and convert these radiations into UV-Vis-IR light, detectable by photodetectors. Garnets, already used in some medical instruments, are promising for TOF-PET detectors, where a rapid response is crucial for optimizing tumor localization. The LUMINANCE project aims to improve the scintillation properties of garnets for medical bioimaging, exploring YAG nanoparticles for optical imaging and GGAG garnets for TOF-PET detectors. Rare-earth doped optical ceramics can be produced with high optical quality and reduced costs, offering practical and effective solutions.

The LUMINANCE project is exploring and developing new ceramic and nanostructured scintillators, enhancing medical diagnostics and other applications:

• Optical ceramic scintillators, thanks to their efficiency and versatility, can be used in various fields such as medical diagnostics, high-energy physics, homeland security, and industrial controls.
• Nanostructured IR scintillators will offer new methods for optical bioimaging, reducing the issues related to current methods.