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

A collaborative study of relative hygroscopicity of anhydrous halide scintillators grown at various laboratories is presented. We have developed a technique to evaluate moisture sensitivity of both raw materials and grown crystals, in which the moisture absorption rate is measured using a gravimetric analysis. Degradation of the scintillation performance was investigated by recording gamma-ray spectra and monitoring the photopeak position, count rate and energy resolution. The accompanying physical degradation of the samples exposed to ambient atmosphere was photographically recorded as well. The results were compared with benchmark commercial scintillators such as NaI:Tl and LaBr 3 :Ce.

Hygroscopicity evaluation of halide scintillators

Improvement in the optical quality and energy resolution of CsSrBr3: Eu scintillator crystals

Revealing the role of calcium codoping on optical and scintillation homogeneity in Lu2SiO5:Ce single crystals

Thermal expansion and stability of cerium-doped Lu2SiO5

Cerium doped lutetium orthosilicate thin films were sputter deposited onto rough and smooth alumina substrates to compare their extrinsic photoluminescence efficiency. To understand the photoluminescence results, scanning electron and cathodoluminescence imaging were performed. The plane view and cross-section images revealed that dark cathodoluminescence regions were correlated with topology in both films, though the mechanisms for the degraded luminescence were different. For the rough films, substrate topology causes localized shadowing of the sputtered species which creates compositional inhomogeneities. The smooth films have protrusions caused by thermally induced stress and the reduced cathodoluminescence intensity is attributed to electron-hole surface recombination.

Charles L. Melcher

Papers

Hygroscopicity evaluation of halide scintillators

Improvement in the optical quality and energy resolution of CsSrBr3: Eu scintillator crystals

Revealing the role of calcium codoping on optical and scintillation homogeneity in Lu2SiO5:Ce single crystals

Thermal expansion and stability of cerium-doped Lu2SiO5

Scanning electron and cathodoluminescence imaging of thin film Lu2SiO5:Ce scintillating materials