A Solar-Blind Perovskite Scintillator Realizing Portable X-ray Imaging
Hao Li, Yun Zhang, Min Zhou, Huaiyi Ding, Lei Zhao, Tingming Jiang, Hui Ying Yang, Feng Zhao, Weiqing Chen, Zhaowei Teng, Jianbei Qiu, Xue Yu, Yang Yang, Xuhui Xu
Abstract
A portable X-ray imaging technique involves conducting a quick response to a target outdoors, which is of great importance for active diagnosis and prompt treatment. However, realizing portable X-ray imaging in terms of equipment miniaturization, image visualization, and the crosstalk of external light signals remains a challenge. Herein, we demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing a lead-free perovskite scintillator (Cs2ZrCl6: Lu3+) for exploring portable X-ray imaging under sunlight without the need for complex imaging devices. Our experiments verify that the ultrabright radioluminescence (347 lm m–2, ∼20 times greater than that of the commercial single-crystal scintillator Bi4Ge3O12) originates from the effective activation of triplet excitons (dark state) of the as-developed scintillator, which is unresponsive to UV and visible photons. Moreover, brightening of dark-state excitons is accelerated via the manipulation of the introduced lanthanide ions. These results highlight the importance of harvesting and taking advantage of engineering dark-state excitons, which is incentive for future research in low-cost X-ray detection for portable, fast-response radiography.