Investigating the effects of LaMnO. on the morphology, structural and optical properties of epoxy-based plastic scintillators

Authors

• Yeni Febrianti
• Airine Hijrah Handayani
• Marzuki Naibaho
• Phahul Zhemas Zul Nehan
• Zulkarnain -
• Arbi Dimyati
• Budhy Kurniawan

Publication Date

2026

Abstract

Plastic scintillators are widely used in radiation detection due to their low cost, fast response, and ease of fabrication, although their performace is often limited by low density, low atomic number, make them less efficient for applications requiring high-energy radiation. In this study, LaMnO3 was synthesized using the hydrothermal method and employed as a dopant to enhance the optical and scintillation properties of epoxy-based plastic scintillators. Structural, morphological, and optical characterizations of LaMnO3 were carried out using X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), UV-Vis and  photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The results confirm that the synthesized LaMnO3 exhibits a single-phase rhombohendral structure with irragular particle morphology, a direct band gap of 5.48 eV, and broad emission spanning 400 nm to 900 nm. XPS results revealed the coexistence of Mn3+ and Mn4+ oxidation states, induced by oxygen vacancies in the LaMnO3 lattice. Plastic scintillators were fabricated using epoxy as the matrix, 2,5-Diphenyloxazole (PPO) as the primary scintillator, 1,4-bis(5-phenyloxazol-2-yl)benzene (POPOP) as the wavelength shifter and LaMnO3 as the dopant. UV-Vis and PL measurements show that incorporating LaMnO3, increases optical absorbance, enhances emission intensity, and broadens the emission range, demonstrating more efficient radiative recombination within the scintillator. Pulse-height spectra obtained using photomultiplier tube (PMT) and a 60Co gamma source reveal a clear shift toward higer channels and increase in total counts for the LaMnO3-doped scintillator, confirming improved light output and energy transfer efficiency. Detection efficiency calculations further show that the LaMnO3-doped scintillator achieves 11.59% higher than the 9.86% of the undoped scintillator.

DOI

10.55713/jmmm.v36i3.2321

First Page

1

Last Page

12

Recommended Citation

Febrianti, Yeni; Handayani, Airine Hijrah; Naibaho, Marzuki; Zul Nehan, Phahul Zhemas; -, Zulkarnain; Dimyati, Arbi; and Kurniawan, Budhy (2026) "Investigating the effects of LaMnO. on the morphology, structural and optical properties of epoxy-based plastic scintillators," Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals: Vol. 36: No. 3, Article 8.
DOI: 10.55713/jmmm.v36i3.2321
Available at: https://digital.car.chula.ac.th/jmmm/vol36/iss3/8