The comparison of a thin-film ZnO nanodevice with silicon-based electronic devices for diagnostic X-ray beam detection

Abstract

Radiation detector devices are of fundamental importance for diagnosing diseases and helping to choose the most appropriate medical treatment. Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films are not usually applied as X-ray photon sensors; however, this study intends to present potential results that enable its application for medical diagnostic use. The damage of the ionizing radiation in typical electronic components (such as transistors) occurs due to the defects generated either in the semiconductor crystal or in the insulating oxide layer, which compromises their long-term use as X-ray detectors. This study also provides some comparisons between the proposed ZnO nanodevice and other semiconductor devices, including photodiode, phototransistor, bipolar junction transistor (BJT), and MOSFET. Based on these comparisons, some advantages and disadvantages of using ZnO thin film will be discussed. Basically, it can be summarized that, although the other semiconductor devices produced a higher intense response, the innovative ZnO thin film-based device presented interesting results that make it promising for radiation detection applications. Furthermore, it has advantages such as superior physical resistance and radiation hardness when compared to ionization chambers and transistor-type devices, respectively.

KEYWORDS:

• X-ray detectors
• ZnO thin film
• medical diagnosis
• radiation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by CNEN, CNPq [grant numbers 141363/2014-2, 315215/2018-6, 308090/2016-0, 427010/2016-0] and CAPES.

Notes on contributors

Claudia P. V. Valença

Claudia P. V. Valença earned a bachelor’s degree in Radiology Technology from the Federal Institute of Pernambuco (IFPE) in 2010. She obtained a master’s degree in Nuclear Instrumentation from the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE) in 2013. From 2014 to 2020, she worked as a teacher at the Integrated Faculty of Patos (FIP). In 2019, she obtained a doctoral degree in Nuclear Instrumentation from the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE). Since 2020, she works as a teacher at the Faculty of Nursing and Medicine Nova Esperança.

Luiz C. Gonçalves Filho

Luiz C. Gonçalves Filho earned a bachelor`s degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Pernambuco (UPE) in 2008. In 2009, he completed a postgraduate course in Radiological Protection and Safety of Radiation Sources and in 2010, he took another course in Nuclear Safety, both courses in the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), Argentina. In 2018, he obtained a master’s degree in Nuclear Instrumentation from the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE) and currently, he is concluding a doctorate (2021) in Nuclear Instrumentation, also in UFPE. Since 2020, he is a teacher at Capibaribe Society School of Education and Culture.

Aline N. Alves

Aline N. Alves earned a bachelor`s degree in Medical Physics from the Catholic University of Pernambuco (UNICAP) in 2010. She worked at the Hospital das Clínicas of Pernambuco (HC-UFPE) as a technician in nuclear medicine from 2010 to 2013. She obtained a master’s degree in Nuclear Instrumentation at the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), in 2014. She is currently working at the HC-UFPE, in the Pathological Anatomy Unit, since 2014.

Marcelo A. Macedo

Marcelo A. Macêdo has a Ph.D. in Physics from the São Carlos Institute of Physics – University of São Paulo (1994). He is currently a Full Professor at the Department of Physics at the Federal University of Sergipe. He has experience in Physics with an emphasis on Condensed Matter, Transport Properties, and Magnetism. His work is mainly focused on the following topics: thin films and magnetic nanoparticles, ionizing radiation detectors, resistive memories, and data acquisition devices.

Divanizia N. Souza

Divanizia N. Souza obtained a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Physics from the Federal University of Sergipe (UFS) and a doctoral degree in Nuclear Technology from the Nuclear and Energy Research Institute (IPEN/USP). Since 1999, she is a professor at the Department of Physics at the Federal University of Sergipe, where she researches dosimetric materials.

Luiz A. P. Santos

Luiz A. P. Santos began the first scientific work at Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE – Physics Laboratory) in 1986, during his undergraduate degree in electronic engineering. After graduating, he worked in the area of technological development of electronic systems at the Intertécnica Company in 1988. In 1989, he returned to UFPE for a master’s degree in Nuclear Instrumentation. From 1994 to 1997, he earned a Ph.D. degree in Geophysics from the Université Joseph Fourier, developing instrumentation for hydrodynamic and pollutants in soil water by Time Domain Reflectometry method. In 1998, he performed his first postdoctoral work on the development of semiconductors for ionizing radiation detection (UFPE). In 2004, he was again a postdoctoral researcher working on the technological development for UV nano-dosimeter at the Laboratory of Photonic Devices and Nanotechnology (UFPE). He is currently working part-time (since 1998) at the CRCN-NE/CNEN (National Nuclear Energy Commission) as head of the Nuclear Instrumentation Laboratory. Since 2009, he guides students of master’s and doctoral degrees in the Nuclear Energy Laboratory (UFPE) in agreement with CRCN-NE/CNEN. He has also been working part-time since 2011 in the SCIENTS company as head of the Technological Development Laboratory.

Daniel A. A. Santos

Daniel A. A. Santos earned a bachelor’s (2008), master’s (2009), and doctoral degree (2013) in Physics from the Federal University of Sergipe (UFS) in Brazil. He participated in a Ph.D. exchange program for 1 year at The State University of New York at Buffalo (SUNY), in the United States. In 2014, he performed postdoctoral work at UFS, where he also worked as a Physics Professor from 2015 to 2017. Moreover, he worked as a Research Scientist at Macashew Tecnologias LTDA in Brazil from 2014 to 2021. At the same time, he earned a master’s degree in 2021 in Energy Management from the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) in Vancouver, Canada. Currently, he works as a Research Scientist at Micromatter Technologies Inc in Vancouver, Canada. His research area is Condensed Matter Physics with a focus on the study of optical, electrical, and magnetic properties of semiconductor thin films and their applications as devices.