Thermoluminescent Behavior of ZrO2–CeO2 System Exposed to UV and Gamma Radiation

In the present work, a thermoluminescent (TL) signal induced by ultraviolet (UV) and gamma radiation in the zirconia-ceria system (ZrO2–CeO2) is reported and discussed. The samples were made by a sol-gel method, using zirconium n-propoxide and cerium nitrate as precursors, followed by thermal treatment at 1100°C for 24 hours. Materials obtained had monoclinic and tetragonal phases of zirconia in accordance with X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The majority of crystalline phase present depends on concentration of ceria, which varied from 3 to 12 wt.%. Finally, experimental results show that the thermoluminescent glow peaks are highly dependent on the content of ceria.