Sub-10 nm Lanthanide-Doped Lu6O5F8 Nanoscintillators for Real-Time High-Resolution Dynamic 3D X-Ray Imaging

Lanthanide-doped fluoride nanoscintillators (NSs) have emerged as promising candidates for X-ray imaging. However, strong afterglow, long lifetime, and poor irradiation stability pose key challenges for real-time dynamic X-ray imaging. In this study, the sub-10 nm Lu 6 O 5 F 8 :Tb NSs with tunable morphologies are prepared via incorporating Li + /Na + ions. The X-ray excited optical luminescence (XEOL) intensity of the Lu6O5F8:15Tb/10Li NSs is stronger than that of NaLuF 4 :15 Tb NSs with a similar particle size while its afterglow is only ≈2.7% compared to that of NaLuF 4 :15 Tb NSs. Utilizing the Lu 6 O 5 F 8 :15 Tb/10Li NSs-integrated film as a scintillator screen, a high resolution of ≈21.6 lp/mm is achieved. Even at a low dose of 0.23 µGy, the fringe detail in the electron device is clearly observed in the X-ray image. The afterglow intensity of the Lu 6 O 5 F 8 :10Eu/10Li NSs decays to 0.7% at 40 µs, which is better than that of CsI:Tl (3.6%@40 µs). Moreover, the Lu 6 O 5 F 8 :10Eu/10Li NSs with a lifetime of 1.65 µs are verified for use in dynamic 3D X-ray imaging. These findings represent a significant advancement in the development of new NSs for high-performance dynamic X-ray imaging.