【Device Papers】Soft x-ray shielding characteristics of natural wood films with varying densities evaluated using a Ga₂O₃ Schottky diode detector

      Researchers from the Korea Aerospace University have published a dissertation titled "Soft x-ray shielding characteristics of natural wood films with varying densities evaluated using a Ga₂O₃ Schottky diode detector" in Applied Physics Letters.

Abstract

      This study evaluates the x-ray shielding effectiveness of natural wood films with different densities using a Ga₂O₃-based Schottky barrier diode detector. Photocurrent suppression, as an indicator of shielding performance, is systematically correlated with wood density through both database-modeled attenuation data and experimental results under continuous soft x-ray exposure. The results demonstrate that higher-density wood samples exhibit markedly enhanced shielding efficiency, approaching that of lightweight metallic and polymeric materials in the 1–20 keV soft x-ray range. Temperature-dependent measurements further reveal that the shielding performance of the wood films decreases with increasing temperature, likely due to thermal degradation of the material. Despite this, high-density wood films maintain shielding efficiencies exceeding 85% up to 423 K, highlighting their potential as lightweight, eco-friendly, and thermally resilient secondary shielding materials for aerospace and high-altitude applications.

DOI：

https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0304649