Growth and Characterization of Detector-Grade Cd_0.9Zn_0.1Te Crystals by the Traveling Heater Method with the Accelerated Crucible Rotation Technique

The accelerated crucible rotation technique has been applied in the traveling heater method process for the growth of CdZnTe:In (CZT:In) ingots. Full single crystalline wafers with a diameter of 53 mm were obtained under optimized growth conditions. The crystalline quality and the photoelectric properties of the CZT crystals were characterized using infrared transmission microscopy, infrared transmittance spectra, current–voltage (I–V) analysis and gamma ray radiation response measurements. The CZT crystals show no Te inclusions over 3 μm in size and those smaller than 3 μm have a density of 10⁵ cm⁻³. The resistivity of the crystals reaches 3.92 × 10¹⁰ Ω/cm⁻¹ by fitting the I–V curve. The mobility–lifetime (μτ) product of the electrons is 4.12 × 10⁻³ cm²/V. Based on the CZT crystals, planar configuration and quasi-hemispherical configuration detectors were fabricated and show a resolution of 3.67% at ²⁴¹Am@59.5 keV and 1.95% at ¹³⁷Cs@662 keV, respectively, which indicates a superior detection performance.