Advatech BGO - Bismuth Germanate Scintillator
Bismuth Germanate - BGO - Bi4Ge3O12 is a highly effective gamma-ray absorber as a result of its high density and high Z characteristics.

BGO scintillator crystals have:
  • Mechanically robust characteristics and are non-hygroscopic
  • Stable scintillating characteristics up to c.100 rad
  • Virtually no afterglow emissions
  • No cleavage planes, so can me easily machined into various shapes and geometries

BGO scintillator crystals have the following issues which should be noted. They:
  • Have a light emission which a is good part is above 500nm, a region where photomultipliers are less sensitive
  • Are intrinsically radioactive making it unacceptable for some applications
  • Are susceptible to radiation damage, starting with doses between 1 and 10 Gray (10² - 10³ rad). Reversible with time or annealing.

BGO scintillator crystals are useful in diverse applications such as:
  • Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
  • Compton suppression spectrometers
  • Geological logging
  • Specialist applications in high energy, nuclear, space and medical physics
BGO - Bismuth Germanate Scintillator
Crystal- Properties -
BGO Scintillator Emission Spectrum
BGO Scintillator
Emission Spectrum
BGO Mass Attenuation
Coefficients
BGO Mass Attenuation
BGO Scintillation Crystals
- Optical Properties -
Property Units Value
Wavelength (Max. Emission) nm 480
Wavelength Range nm 375.650
Decay Times ns 300
Light Yield photons/keV 8-10
Photoelectron Yield % of NaI(Tl) 15-20
Radiation Length cm 1.118
Radiation Length g.cm-2 7.97
Moliere Radius cm 2.259
Optical Transmission µm 0.15 - 12.5
Transmittance % >90 (0.35 - 9µm)
Refractive Index % 2.15 (@480nm
Reflection Loss/Surface % 6.8
Neutron Capture Cross-section barns 1.47
BGO Scintillation Crystals
- Mechanical Properties -
Property Units Value
Chemical Formula (Bi₂O₃)₂(GeO₂)₃
Density g/cm³ 7.13
Atomic Number (Effective) 74
Melting Point ºC 1044
Thermal Expansion Coeff. C⁻¹ 7.0 x 10‾⁶
Cleavage Plane None
Hardness Mho 5
Hygroscopic No
Solubility g/100gH₂0 N/A
BGO Scintillation Crystals
- Further Reading/Publications -
BGO - Wikipedia
BGO - Details - Refractive Index
BGO - PET Application
BGO - PET Application
BGO Scintillation Crystals
- Sizes -
Diameters: 75mm max.
Lengths: 300mm max.