SCINTAX

The SCINTAX project aimed at developing novel thin scintillating films for applications in high performance X-ray imaging with a view to introducing novel X-ray detectors to the scientific and industrial applications market. To achieve those aims lutetium orthosilicate Lu2SiO5 (LSO) scintillators doped with different activators were grown by liquid phase epitaxy (LPE) on dedicated substrates. The LSO high density (7.4 g/cm3) the effective atomic number (65.2) and the high light yield make this scintillator highly applicable for indirect X-ray detection in which the ionising radiation is converted into visible light and then counted by a digital detector [1, 2]. The novel scintillating film was used in detector systems for high resolution X-ray imaging in 2D and 3D, preferably at synchrotron radiation sources. A second dedicated detector with high efficiency was built and mounted into a demonstrator also developed in the project for industrial application.

The ScinTAX project involved nine different partners having different competences in the X-ray imaging field: detector optimisation, certification of the achieved performance, development of the growth technique and integration of the new scintillating screens into the fully working device. The long term experience of the involved partners guaranteed the outstanding results of the project and allowed the successful accomplishment of the initially established targets.