Crystals Cd(1-x)Zn(x)Te: A promising material for non-cryogenic semiconductor detectors - Preparations, structure defectness and electrophysical properties

The relationship between preparation conditions of the raw charge, crucible material, growth regimes, and structure defectness and electrophysical properties of Cd(1-x)Zn(x)Te crystals is studied. The crystals were grown both from the raw material that had been pre-synthesized in quartz ampules and from the raw material synthesized from the elements directly in the growth furnace. It is shown that the best values of electric resistivity rho (up to 10 exp 11 Ohm/cm) and sensitivity to X-ray and gamma-radiation are obtained for crystals grown in crucibles of highly pure coal-graphite material from the presynthesized raw charge. A correlation is established between values of rho and crystal defectness: a decrease of dislocation density by 10 exp 4 times led to 10 exp 7 times higher values of resistivity. Concentration of dislocation etching pits regularly decreased with higher purity of the raw material and optimization of crystal preparation technology. (Author)