Journal of Aeronautics & Aerospace Engineering
Open Access

Post-growth annealing techniques on removal of tellurium inclusions in cadmium zinc telluride crystals

3^rd International Conference and Exhibition on Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

October 05-07, 2015 San Francisco, USA

Aaron Lee Adams

Alabama A & M University, USA

Posters-Accepted Abstracts: J Aeronaut Aerospace Eng

Abstract :

Nuclear radiation detectors are used for detecting, tracking, and identifying radioactive materials which emit highenergy gamma and X-rays. The use of Cadmium Zinc Telluride (CdZnTe) detectors is particularly attractive because of the detector�s ability to operate at room temperature and measure the energy spectra of gamma-ray sources with a high resolution, typically less than 1% at 662 keV. While CdZnTe detectors are acceptable imperfections in the crystals limit their full market potential. One of the major imperfections are Tellurium inclusions generated during the crystal growth process by the retrograde solubility of Tellurium and Tellurium-rich melt trapped at the growth interface. Tellurium inclusions trap charge carriers generated by gamma and X-ray photons and thus reduce the portion of generated charge carriers that reach the electrodes for collection and conversion into a readable signal which is representative of the ionizing radiation�s energy and intensity. One approach in resolving this problem is post-growth annealing which has the potential of removing the Tellurium inclusions and associated impurities.

Biography :

Email: aaron.adams@aamu.edu