Collaborative Research: Studies of light-responsive novel metal and lanthanide-based nanocomposites: X-ray radiation enhancing and radioluminescence properties

非技术概述纳米级材料已经证明了一系列广泛而显著的特性，使其适用于许多应用。 纳米材料在各种外部刺激下的行为，如温度、机械力、pH值等，已被广泛调查。 然而，纳米材料与电离辐射（如X射线）的相互作用在很大程度上仍未得到探索。 调查潜在的现象和理解电离辐射与纳米级物质的相互作用机制是材料化学中的一个未知问题，并将产生有价值的信息，允许在核科学和技术中使用这种结构，用于医学，功率换能器，能量存储，辐射传感器和致动器。 这项合作研究计划将研究一类新型的多组分纳米材料，它们对低能和高能X射线都有反应。 这项研究将对弗吉尼亚联邦大学（VCU）的机械与核工程项目产生巨大的教育影响。 在材料和辐射化学，先进的纳米材料合成和制造的新知识将在本科和研究生课程传播。 这里提出的研究也将是詹姆斯麦迪逊大学（JMU）核科学的一个重要布恩，并将包括跨学科研究项目的本科生。 学生将获得不同的经验，而在这个跨学科的项目工作将创造大量的机会，为那些寻求职业生涯在核工程，应用光子科学，纳米科学，加速器物理学，或医学物理学，以及那些直接进入核工业或政府的劳动力。技术总结本研究项目将推进双方的根本机制的基本理解，辐射剂量增强和纳米复合材料与高能光子相互作用后的辐射发光响应。 这项工作将建立在辐射与物质相互作用的理论基础上，并扩展到水介质中导致辐射增强现象的表面和界面效应。本项目主要研究三个方面：1）多组分纳米材料的可控合成，探索其与电离辐射相互作用的机理; 2）多组分纳米材料的辐射发光和辐射增强特性;第三章实施基于蒙特卡罗模拟的计算模型，以评估物理增强对基于其化学成分的纳米材料的放射增敏特性的贡献和形态学。 实验工作将涉及化学、电化学和光谱技术，以量化辐射增强和材料光学特性中所涉及的活性物质。 计算工作将使用GEANT 4粒子输运代码进行，以模拟X射线与所研究的纳米结构的相互作用。 最终，这项研究将建立固态材料结构和性能之间的相关性，特别是考虑X射线参数的影响，如X射线束的能谱和能量传递到系统的速率对材料系统的行为。 总体而言，拟议的实验和计算工具将导致理解的纳米材料的结构-性能关系，并将推进合成，评估和模拟的辐射增强和辐射发光纳米材料，使其在各个领域的实施。总的来说，参与这项工作的本科生和研究生都将有机会在JMU的麦迪逊加速器实验室的加速器环境中获得实践经验，同时参与切割-该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查进行评估来支持的搜索.

Non-Technical SummaryMaterials at the nanoscale have evidenced a wide and remarkable set of properties that make them suitable for many applications. The behavior of nanomaterials under various external stimuli, such as temperature, mechanical forces, pH, etc., has been widely investigated. However, the interaction of nanomaterials with ionizing radiation, such as X-rays, remains largely unexplored. Investigating potential phenomena and understanding the interaction mechanisms of ionizing radiation with matter at the nanoscale is an unknown question in materials chemistry and will generate valuable information to allow the use of such structures in nuclear science and technology for applications in medicine, power transducers, energy storage, radiation sensors, and actuators. This collaborative research proposal will investigate a novel class of multicomponent nanomaterials responsive to both low and high energy X-rays. This research will have a tremendous educational impact on the Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering program at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). The new knowledge in materials and radiation chemistry, advanced nanomaterials synthesis, and manufacturing will be disseminated in the undergraduate and graduate courses. The research proposed here will also be a significant boon for the nuclear science at James Madison University (JMU) and will include undergraduates in the interdisciplinary-research projects. The diverse experience the students will gain while working on this interdisciplinary project will create a multitude of opportunities for those seeking careers in nuclear engineering, applied photon science, nanoscience, accelerator physics, or medical physics, as well as for those directly entering the workforce in nuclear industry or government.Technical SummaryThis research project will advance both the fundamental understanding of the underlying mechanism of radiation dose enhancement and the radioluminescence response upon the nanocomposites interacting with high-energy photons. The work will build upon the theory of radiation interaction with matter and expand on the surface and interfacial effects in aqueous media that lead to the radiation enhancement phenomenon. This project focuses on three key areas: 1) Expand on the controlled synthesis of multicomponent nanomaterials to explore their mechanisms of interaction with ionizing radiation; 2) Investigate their radioluminescence and radiation enhancing properties; 3) Implement computational models based on Monte Carlo simulations to assess the contribution of the physical enhancement to the radiosensitization properties of the nanomaterials based on their chemical compositions and morphologies. The experimental work will involve chemical, electrochemical, and spectroscopic techniques to quantify reactive species involved in the radiation enhancement and the materials' optical properties. Computational work will be carried out using GEANT4 particle transport code to model the interaction of the X-rays with the studied nanostructures. Ultimately, this research will establish correlations between the material structure and properties in the solid-state, specifically considering the effects of the X-ray parameters such as the energy spectrum of the X-ray beam and the rate at which the energy is delivered to the system have on the behavior of the materials systems. Overall, the proposed experimental and computational tools will lead to an understanding of the structure-property relationships of the nanomaterials and will advance the synthesis, evaluation, and simulation of radiation enhancing and radioluminescent nanomaterials to enable their implementation in various fields. Overall, both the undergraduate and graduate students involved in this work will have the opportunity to get hands-on experience in an accelerator-based environment at the JMU's Madison Accelerator Laboratory while participating in cutting-edge interdisciplinary research both at VCU and JMU.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.