Author(s)

Sunil Kumar Chaudhary

Department of Physics, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, India.

Lead iodide is an important inorganic solid for fundamental research and possible technological applications and is considered to be a potential room temperature nuclear radiation detector. In lead iodide the phenomenon of polytypism is posing an interesting problem of phase transformations amongst its various polytypic modifications. The transformations have also been observed even when the crystals are stored for few months. It causes deterioration in functioning of PbI₂ devices. Taking into account the known structures of PbI₂ and the data available on the mode of growth and storage of crystals, it has been concluded that purified melt grown crystals of PbI₂ are the best suited for nuclear radiation detectors.

Lead Iodide; Polytypism; Crystal Structure; Phase Transformations

S. Chaudhary, "Lead Iodide Crystals as Input Material for Radiation Detectors," Crystal Structure Theory and Applications, Vol. 1 No. 3, 2012, pp. 21-24. doi: 10.4236/csta.2012.13004.