The 5d level positions of the trivalent lanthanides in inorganic compounds

Positron emission tomography (PET) provides metabolic information that has been documented to be useful in patient care. The properties of positron decay permit accurate imaging of the distribution of positron-emitting radiopharmaceuticals. The wide array of positron-emitting radiopharmaceuticals has been used to characterize multiple physiologic and pathologic states. PET is used for characterizing brain disorders such as Alzheimer disease and epilepsy and cardiac disorders such as coronary artery disease and myocardial viability. The neurologic and cardiac applications of PET are not covered in this review. The major utilization of PET clinically is in oncology and consists of imaging the distribution of fluorine 18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG). FDG, an analogue of glucose, accumulates in most tumors in a greater amount than it does in normal tissue. FDG PET is being used in diagnosis and follow-up of several malignancies, and the list of articles supporting its use continues to grow. In this review, the ph...

Clinical Applications of PET in Oncology

The authors discuss a single-crystal inorganic scintillator, cerium-doped lutetium oxyorthosilicate (Lu/sub 2(1-x)/Ce/sub 2x/(SiO/sub 4/) or LSO). It has a scintillation emission intensity which is approximately 75% of NaI(Tl) with a decay time of approximately 40 ns. The peak emission wavelength is 420 nm. It has a very high gamma-ray detection efficiency due to its density of 7.4 g/cm/sup 3/ and its effective atomic number of 66. Its radiation length of 1.14 cm is only slightly longer than bismuth germanate (BGO). The scintillation properties of Ce-doped LSO are compared to NaI(Tl), BGO, and cerium-doped gadolinium oxyorthosilicate (GSO). In addition to desirable physical properties such as high density and high atomic number, LSO also processes a combination of high emission intensity and fast decay which together are superior to any other known single crystal scintillator. >

Cerium-doped lutetium oxyorthosilicate: a fast, efficient new scintillator

Garnets have the general formula of A3B2C3O12 and form a wide range of inorganic compounds, occurring both naturally (gemstones) and synthetically. Their physical and chemical properties are closely related to the structure and composition. In particular, Ce3+-doped garnet phosphors have a long history and are widely applied, ranging from flying spot cameras, lasers and phosphors in fluorescent tubes to more recent applications in white light LEDs, as afterglow materials and scintillators for medical imaging. Garnet phosphors are unique in their tunability of the luminescence properties through variations in the {A}, [B] and (C) cation sublattice. The flexibility in phosphor composition and the tunable luminescence properties rely on design and synthesis strategies for new garnet compositions with tailor-made luminescence properties. It is the aim of this review to discuss the variation in luminescence properties of Ce3+-doped garnet materials in relation to the applications. This review will provide insight into the relation between crystal chemistry and luminescence for the important class of Ce3+-doped garnet phosphors. It will summarize previous research on the structural design and optical properties of garnet phosphors and also discuss future research opportunities in this field.

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Ce3+-Doped garnet phosphors: composition modification, luminescence properties and applications.

The recent introduction of high-resolution molecular imaging technology is considered by many experts as a major breakthrough that will potentially lead to a revolutionary paradigm shift in health care and revolutionize clinical practice. This paper intends to balance the capabilities of the two major molecular imaging modalities used in nuclear medicine, namely positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). The motivations are many-fold: (1) to gain a better understanding of the strengths and limitations of the two imaging modalities in the context of recent and ongoing developments in hardware and software design; (2) to emphasize that certain issues, historically and commonly thought as limitations of one technology, may now instead be viewed as challenges that can be addressed; (3) to point out that current state of the art PET and SPECT scanners can (greatly) benefit from improvements in innovative image reconstruction algorithms; and (4) to identify important areas of research in PET and SPECT imaging that will be instrumental to further improvements in the two modalities. Both technologies are poised to advance molecular imaging and have a direct impact on clinical and research practice to influence the future of molecular medicine.

PET versus SPECT: strengths, limitations and challenges

Experimental studies of LSO:Ce crystals co-doped with various concentrations of Ca are presented. Photoluminescence decay time, excitation and emission spectra, thermal response and X-ray excited luminescence are investigated as a function of Ca concentration. Experimental data show Ca co-doping does not alter the energy level structure of either Ce1 or Ce2, but reduces the relative population of Ce2 to Ce1. Thus, the luminescence from Ce2 is suppressed, which contributes to the fast scintillation decay of Ca co-doped LSO:Ce.

Effect of Ca Co-Doping on the Luminescence Centers in LSO:Ce Single Crystals

Effects of increasing size and changing europium activator concentration in KCaI3 scintillator crystals

The four real values of the dielectric function tensor of the monoclinic crystal Lu2SiO5 or lutetium oxyorthosilicate (LSO) have been determined using generalized ellipsometry from 200 to 850 nm. The three principal values are fit to the Sellmeier model and they indicate that the band gap of LSO is less than ∼9 eV. The off-diagonal element e12 is non-zero over the entire spectrum, but it is very close to zero for wavelengths longer than ∼400 nm, indicating that structurally monoclinic LSO is nearly optically orthorhombic in this wavelength region. The spectroscopic dielectric functions of three isotropic ceramic LSO samples are presented, which are consistent with the dielectric functions of single-crystal LSO when the effects of optical density are included. As a comparison, the dielectric functions are also determined using relativistic electronic structure and optical calculations based on the recently developed potential functional of Tran and Blaha [Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 226401 (2009)].

Spectroscopic refractive indices of monoclinic single crystal and ceramic lutetium oxyorthosilicate from 200 to 850 nm

Scintillation properties of Eu2+-doped KBa2I5 and K2BaI4

Gadolinium oxyorthosilicate (GSO) with its high density, high effective Z, fast decay time and good performance at high temperature, is the scintillation detector of choice for a new generation of neutron-induced, inelastic gamma-ray spectroscopy tools for borehole measurements, specifically aimed at measuring the carbon and oxygen content from the region surrounding the borehole. The ratio of the carbon and oxygen gamma-ray yields are transformed into formation oil saturation. To get the maximum benefit from GSO, the data acquisition, choice of materials, and measurement geometry were optimized for a small diameter tool at elevated temperatures and crystal characteristics. The large neutron cross section of the gadolinium in the scintillation crystal, its second decay constant, and the desired precision of the oil saturation measurement had important consequences in the tool design. >

Charles L. Melcher

Papers

Effect of Ca Co-Doping on the Luminescence Centers in LSO:Ce Single Crystals

Effects of increasing size and changing europium activator concentration in KCaI3 scintillator crystals

Spectroscopic refractive indices of monoclinic single crystal and ceramic lutetium oxyorthosilicate from 200 to 850 nm

Scintillation properties of Eu2+-doped KBa2I5 and K2BaI4

Use of GSO for inelastic gamma-ray spectroscopy measurements in the borehole