Patent ID: 7700003

Claim:
A method, comprising: heating a powder comprising a scintillator composition to a temperature that is below the melting point of the scintillator composition but is sufficiently high to form a coherent mass, wherein the coherent mass is polycrystalline and has: a pulse height resolution that is less than 20 percent at 662 kilo electron volts; a light yield of more than 5000 photons per million electron volt; or both a pulse height resolution that is less than 20 percent at 662 kilo electron volts and a light yield of more than 5000 photons per million electron, and wherein the polycrystalline coherent mass comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of Cs 2 NaPrCl 6 , Cs 2 NaPrCl 5 Br, Cs 2 NaCeCl 5 I, Cs 2 NaCeCl 3 I 3 , Cs 2 NaCeBr 5 I, Cs 2 NaCeBr 4 I 2 , and Cs 2 NaCeBr 3 I 3 .