Large-size single crystal growth of Pr:Lu3Al5O12 and uniformity of its scintillation properties

Pr:LuAG crystals possess interesting properties such as high density, high light yield, and very fast 5d-4f emission decay time. Recently, we developed a Pr:LuAG single crystal with a diameter of 92 mm for scintillator applications such as medical imaging. In this study, Pr-doped Lu₃Al₅0₁₂ (Pr:LuAG) single crystals with a diameter of 92 mm were grown by means of the Czochralski method; a body length of up to 100 mm was achieved. Scintillation light yield of Pr:LuAG was more than 2.8 times higher than the standard Bi₄Ge₃O₁₂(BGO) sample. Using 2.45 mm ×5.1 mm ×15 mm size sample coupled with photomultiplier (Hamamatsu H7195), energy resolution was 7.1% at 662 keV in average. The standard deviation of the light yield and the energy resolution was around 5.4% and 9.5% along the longitudinal direction of the grown crystal, respectively.