X-Ray Photoconductive Nanocomposites

The successful development of digital radiography depends, to a large extent, on the availability of suitable x-ray photoconductors. The x-ray photoconductive nanocomposites reported here combine the advantages of both inorganic and organic compounds. An inorganic compound was finely dispersed in an organic polymer. The inorganic compound, with its large x-ray absorption efficiency, functioned as the x-ray absorber, and the polymer provided good dielectric properties and ease of thin-film preparation. The preparation procedures and the x-ray photoconductive properties of a specific example, a 50 percent by weight nanocomposite of bismuth triiodide and nylon-11, are discussed in detail.