Nanostructured materials effectively combine organic and inorganic material properties in devices that can address issues that classical materials face. Existing high energy photon spectroscopic detection materials are restricted by the size, operating temperature, insufficient energy resolution, and poor mechanical performance limiting the utility of these bulk devices. Here, we report on a nanostructured film composed of aligned semiconducting nanoparticles in a matrix of aramid nanofibers resulting in flexible room-temperature detectors of x-rays and nuclear radiation. Specifically, cadmium telluride nanoparticles synthesized with short-chained organic ligands (thioglycolic acid, 1-thioglycerol) are embedded into the robust polymer matrix through controlled hydrogen-bonding in order to create a nanoparticle network within the solid for effective charge percolation. These nanoparticles achieve &lt; 1 nA leakage current at room temperature, and display no degradation in electrical response after 1000 bending cycles. These CdTe detectors achieve an energy resolution of 3.6% at 81 keV when impinged by gamma-rays from a 133Ba source, which is comparable to single-crystalline CdTe detectors. By incorporating some amount of conductive silver nanoparticles into the CdTe-aramid nanocomposite, the energy resolution is improved to 0.62%, which is comparable to high purity germanium. Monte-carlo n-particle simulation is utilized to compare the performance of the nanocomposite device to the expected performance of a bulk device of similar composition, indicating that the nanostructured devices have a superior radiation response.

Flexible strong photon sensors composed of CdTe-aramid nanocomposites

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.