Microstructure and Optical Properties of BaF$_2$ Transparent Ceramics Fabricated by Air Pre-sintering and Hot Isostatic Pressing

Heng Liu; Chen Hu; Jingshan Hou; Ziqiu Cheng; Junhao Ye; Tingsong Li; Dong Huang; Yongzheng Fang; Dariusz Hreniak; Jiang Li

doi:10.62762/JAMR.2026.956976

Article Information

Published in Journal of Advanced Materials Research

Volume/Issue Volume 2, Issue 4, 2026

Pages 262-273

Abstract

BaF$_2$ scintillation ceramics feature a rapid temporal response, high fast-component light yield, and a short X-ray attenuation length, making them a promising material for ultrafast X-ray imaging. In this work, BaF$_2$ nanopowder was co-precipitated from Ba(NO$_3$)$_2$ and KF$\cdot$2H$_2$O, consolidated by 600-750$^{\circ}$C air pre-sintering, and post-treated by hot isostatic pressing (HIP). The ceramics obtained under various process parameters allowed us to investigate temperature-dependent changes in microstructure, transmittance, and scintillation properties, including X-ray-excited luminescence (XEL), decay kinetics, and light yield. It was found that air pre-sintered compacts are porous, with relative density reaching a maximum at 700$^{\circ}$C. In addition, HIP eliminated most of the pores, leaving only residual intragranular pores. Both in-line transmittance and scintillation properties correlated strongly with increasing air pre-sintering temperature. The optimized BaF$_2$ ceramic achieves an in-line transmittance (1mm thick) of 57.6% and 40.6% at 800nm and 220nm, respectively, with a fast component of 16.8% and a light yield of 2655ph/MeV. High-temperature thermoluminescence suggests that a deep trap with considerable intensity may be responsible for the reduced light yield in the ceramic sample.

Graphical Abstract

Microstructure and Optical Properties of BaF$_2$ Transparent Ceramics Fabricated by Air Pre-sintering and Hot Isostatic Pressing

Keywords

BaF$_2$ scintillation ceramics Microstructure Scintillation properties Hot isostatic pressing

Data Availability Statement

Data will be made available on request.

Funding

This work was supported in part by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant 52502156; in part by the International Partnership Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences under Grant 030GJHZ2024026FN; in part by the National Key R&D Program of China under Grant 2026YFE0150500; and in part by the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange (NAWA) under the joint research projects between the Republic of Poland and China 2025, project no. BPN/BCH/2025/1/00039/U/00001.

Conflicts of Interest

Jiang Li served as an Associate Editor of the Journal of Advanced Materials Research at the time of manuscript submission. To ensure the integrity of the peer-review process, Jiang Li was not involved in the editorial handling, peer review, or decision-making process for this manuscript, which was handled independently by another editor. The remaining authors declare no conflicts of interest.

AI Use Statement

The authors declare that no generative AI was used in the preparation of this manuscript.

Ethical Approval and Consent to Participate

Not applicable.

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APA Style

Liu, H., Hu, C., Hou, J., Cheng, Z., Ye, J., Li, T., Huang, D., Fang, Y., Hreniak, D., & Li, J. (2026). Microstructure and Optical Properties of BaF2 Transparent Ceramics Fabricated by Air Pre-sintering and Hot Isostatic Pressing. Journal of Advanced Materials Research, 2(4), 262-273. https://doi.org/10.62762/JAMR.2026.956976

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TY  - JOUR
AU  - Liu, Heng
AU  - Hu, Chen
AU  - Hou, Jingshan
AU  - Cheng, Ziqiu
AU  - Ye, Junhao
AU  - Li, Tingsong
AU  - Huang, Dong
AU  - Fang, Yongzheng
AU  - Hreniak, Dariusz
AU  - Li, Jiang
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/08
TI  - Microstructure and Optical Properties of BaF$_2$ Transparent Ceramics Fabricated by Air Pre-sintering and Hot Isostatic Pressing
JO  - Journal of Advanced Materials Research
T2  - Journal of Advanced Materials Research
JF  - Journal of Advanced Materials Research
VL  - 2
IS  - 4
SP  - 262
EP  - 273
DO  - 10.62762/JAMR.2026.956976
UR  - https://www.icck.org/article/abs/JAMR.2026.956976
KW  - BaF$_2$ scintillation ceramics
KW  - Microstructure
KW  - Scintillation properties
KW  - Hot isostatic pressing
AB  - BaF$_2$ scintillation ceramics feature a rapid temporal response, high fast-component light yield, and a short X-ray attenuation length, making them a promising material for ultrafast X-ray imaging. In this work, BaF$_2$ nanopowder was co-precipitated from Ba(NO$_3$)$_2$ and KF$\cdot$2H$_2$O, consolidated by 600-750$^{\circ}$C air pre-sintering, and post-treated by hot isostatic pressing (HIP). The ceramics obtained under various process parameters allowed us to investigate temperature-dependent changes in microstructure, transmittance, and scintillation properties, including X-ray-excited luminescence (XEL), decay kinetics, and light yield. It was found that air pre-sintered compacts are porous, with relative density reaching a maximum at 700$^{\circ}$C. In addition, HIP eliminated most of the pores, leaving only residual intragranular pores. Both in-line transmittance and scintillation properties correlated strongly with increasing air pre-sintering temperature. The optimized BaF$_2$ ceramic achieves an in-line transmittance (1mm thick) of 57.6% and 40.6% at 800nm and 220nm, respectively, with a fast component of 16.8% and a light yield of 2655ph/MeV. High-temperature thermoluminescence suggests that a deep trap with considerable intensity may be responsible for the reduced light yield in the ceramic sample.
SN  - 3070-5851
PB  - Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge
LA  - English
ER  -

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@article{Liu2026Microstruc,
  author = {Heng Liu and Chen Hu and Jingshan Hou and Ziqiu Cheng and Junhao Ye and Tingsong Li and Dong Huang and Yongzheng Fang and Dariusz Hreniak and Jiang Li},
  title = {Microstructure and Optical Properties of BaF\$\_2\$ Transparent Ceramics Fabricated by Air Pre-sintering and Hot Isostatic Pressing},
  journal = {Journal of Advanced Materials Research},
  year = {2026},
  volume = {2},
  number = {4},
  pages = {262-273},
  doi = {10.62762/JAMR.2026.956976},
  url = {https://www.icck.org/article/abs/JAMR.2026.956976},
  abstract = {BaF\$\_2\$ scintillation ceramics feature a rapid temporal response, high fast-component light yield, and a short X-ray attenuation length, making them a promising material for ultrafast X-ray imaging. In this work, BaF\$\_2\$ nanopowder was co-precipitated from Ba(NO\$\_3\$)\$\_2\$ and KF\$\cdot\$2H\$\_2\$O, consolidated by 600-750\$^{\circ}\$C air pre-sintering, and post-treated by hot isostatic pressing (HIP). The ceramics obtained under various process parameters allowed us to investigate temperature-dependent changes in microstructure, transmittance, and scintillation properties, including X-ray-excited luminescence (XEL), decay kinetics, and light yield. It was found that air pre-sintered compacts are porous, with relative density reaching a maximum at 700\$^{\circ}\$C. In addition, HIP eliminated most of the pores, leaving only residual intragranular pores. Both in-line transmittance and scintillation properties correlated strongly with increasing air pre-sintering temperature. The optimized BaF\$\_2\$ ceramic achieves an in-line transmittance (1mm thick) of 57.6\% and 40.6\% at 800nm and 220nm, respectively, with a fast component of 16.8\% and a light yield of 2655ph/MeV. High-temperature thermoluminescence suggests that a deep trap with considerable intensity may be responsible for the reduced light yield in the ceramic sample.},
  keywords = {BaF\$\_2\$ scintillation ceramics, Microstructure, Scintillation properties, Hot isostatic pressing},
  issn = {3070-5851},
  publisher = {Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge}
}

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