Scintillation principle

The principle of scintillation luminescence is mainly based on the fact that when a substance is excited by high-energy particles (such as X-rays, gamma rays) or high-energy radiation, the electrons in its atoms or molecules are excited to high energy levels. Subsequently, when these excited states of electrons are de excited, they release energy and produce photons. This process involves the transition of matter from an excited state to a ground state, where the number of photons produced is proportional to the energy deposited by high-energy particles in the scintillator. These photons then propagate outwards and decay exponentially as they propagate through the scintillator.



Specifically, when high-energy particles enter a scintillator, their atoms or molecules are excited and produce fluorescence. This process utilizes light collection components such as optical guides and reflectors, allowing fluorescence to be emitted as much as possible onto the photosensitive layer of the photoelectric conversion device and produce photoelectrons. The photoelectrons in the photomultiplier tube are accelerated by the strong electric field between the anode stages and bombard the next anode stage, thereby producing more photoelectrons and achieving multiplication until they finally reach the anode and generate a signal in the output circuit. In addition, organic scintillators are aromatic hydrocarbons with a benzene ring structure, and their luminescence mechanism is mainly due to the transition of the molecule itself from the excited state to the ground state. The scintillation counter is a detection device that uses radiation or particles to cause the scintillator to emit light and records the intensity and energy of the radiation through photoelectric devices.

The scintillation principle is a physical principle that utilizes the phenomenon of material scintillation under the action of an excited jet. Scintillators are substances that can produce instantaneous bright light upon excitation, and they have important application value in fields such as nuclear physics, particle physics, and radiation detection. Here, we will introduce the basic principles, structural characteristics, and application fields of scintillators.

The basic principle of a scintillator is that when high-energy particles or photons pass through the scintillator, the atoms or molecules in the scintillator are excited, producing electronic excited states. These excited states of electrons will release energy when excited for a short period of time, which excites the fluorescent substances in the scintillator, causing them to fluoresce and produce visible light.


Scintillators are usually composed of scintillation materials, photomultiplier tubes, signal processing circuits, and other components. The scintillation material is the core part of the scintillator, which can effectively convert the energy of incident particles into optical signals. A photomultiplier tube is a device used to receive and amplify the light signal generated by a scintillator. It can convert weak light signals into electrical signals to obtain energy information of the incident particles.

The scintillation principle has a wide range of applications in nuclear physics experiments, particle physics experiments, and radiation detection. In nuclear physics experiments, scintillators are used to detect the energy and trajectory information of particles such as neutrons and gamma rays. In particle physics experiments, scintillators are used to detect the energy and trajectory information of high-energy particles, in order to study their properties and interactions. In the field of radiation detection, scintillators are used to detect the radiation levels of substances such as groundwater, mineral deposits, and nuclear waste, thereby achieving monitoring and analysis of these substances.

In short, the scintillation principle is an important physical principle that has a wide range of applications in scientific research and engineering technology. Through in-depth understanding and research on the principle of scintillation, it can promote the development of fields such as nuclear physics, particle physics, and radiation detection, and make effective contributions to the progress of all human society.