An investigation of single-crystal PbTe for nuclear radiation detector applications

Lead chalcogenide materials, with high atomic numbers for favorable detection efficiency and narrow band-gaps for fine energy resolution, hold promise as a medium for the detection of ionizing radiation. Their viability as a material basis for detectors is assessed by characterizing p-type lead telluride (PbTe) in single crystal form. Following mechanical polishing and chemical etching of the material, metallic electrodes were deposited and current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) characteristics of the material were investigated at both room and liquid nitrogen temperatures. High charge carrier concentrations were calculated and shallow depletion layers were developed. Alpha particles, from an ²⁴¹Am source were impinged upon the PbTe crystal, and an energy spectrum was obtained which demonstrated the positive response of the material to the incident quanta.