Lightweight Soft X-ray Shielding in β-Ga2O3-Coated Natural Wood Evaluated Using a Ga2O3 Schottky Barrier Diode Detector
- 1Korea Aerospace University , , ,
- 2University of Oslo , , P.O. Box 1048 Blindern, ,
- 3Korea Institute of Ceramic Engineering and Technology , ,
Abstract
Soft X-ray shielding under stringent mass constraints is increasingly important for near-space aviation, small satellite platforms, and other weight-sensitive aerospace systems. Natural wood is an attractive lightweight and biobased structural core; however, its attenuation capability at keV range photon energies is strongly governed by bulk density. In this study, we enhance the soft X-ray shielding performance of natural wood by introducing a spray-deposited β-Ga2O3 particle-containing coating formed with a binder matrix. The transmitted X-ray intensity was quantified using a β-Ga2O3 Schottky barrier diode detector under 5.0 kVp irradiation. Three wood species with different bulk densities─cedar, oak, and birch, with densities of 0.289, 0.697, and 0.913 g·cm–3, respectively─were prepared with a fixed thickness of 1 mm. Cross-sectional scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy reveal the formation of an approximately 100 μm thick near-surface wood–inorganic hybrid region, in which Ga and O signals coexist within the coated wood structure. Compared with uncoated wood, the β-Ga2O3-containing coating consistently reduces the transmitted X-ray-induced current for all wood species, leading to improved shielding efficiency. Notably, cedar, the lowest density wood, exhibits the largest relative improvement after coating, indicating that a thin inorganic coating can effectively compensate for the intrinsically limited attenuation of lightweight wood cores while imposing only a modest mass penalty. These results demonstrate a practical wood–inorganic composite architecture for lightweight soft X-ray shielding and suggest that low-density wood substrates can provide a favorable mass–performance balance when combined with β-Ga2O3-based surface hybridization.
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BibTeX
@article{kwak2026lightweight,
title = {{Lightweight Soft X-ray Shielding in β-Ga2O3-Coated Natural Wood Evaluated Using a Ga2O3 Schottky Barrier Diode Detector}},
author = {Jiwon Kwak and Sunjae Kim and Soon-il Kwon and Heejoong Ryou and Dowon Lee and Woo-Min Cho and Hyun-Ung Oh and Jin-Ho Kim and Ji-Hyeon Park and Dae-Woo Jeon and Wan Sik Hwang},
journal = {ACS Omega},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1021/acsomega.6c05989},
url = {https://pubs.acs.org/acsodf/article/11/41/63096/5444225/Lightweight-Soft-X-ray-Shielding-in-Ga2O3-Coated},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Lightweight Soft X-ray Shielding in β-Ga2O3-Coated Natural Wood Evaluated Using a Ga2O3 Schottky Barrier Diode Detector
AU - Jiwon Kwak
AU - Sunjae Kim
AU - Soon-il Kwon
AU - Heejoong Ryou
AU - Dowon Lee
AU - Woo-Min Cho
AU - Hyun-Ung Oh
AU - Jin-Ho Kim
AU - Ji-Hyeon Park
AU - Dae-Woo Jeon
AU - Wan Sik Hwang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/03
JO - ACS Omega
DO - 10.1021/acsomega.6c05989
UR - https://pubs.acs.org/acsodf/article/11/41/63096/5444225/Lightweight-Soft-X-ray-Shielding-in-Ga2O3-Coated
AB - Soft X-ray shielding under stringent mass constraints is increasingly important for near-space aviation, small satellite platforms, and other weight-sensitive aerospace systems. Natural wood is an attractive lightweight and biobased structural core; however, its attenuation capability at keV range photon energies is strongly governed by bulk density. In this study, we enhance the soft X-ray shielding performance of natural wood by introducing a spray-deposited β-Ga2O3 particle-containing coating formed with a binder matrix. The transmitted X-ray intensity was quantified using a β-Ga2O3 Schottky barrier diode detector under 5.0 kVp irradiation. Three wood species with different bulk densities─cedar, oak, and birch, with densities of 0.289, 0.697, and 0.913 g·cm–3, respectively─were prepared with a fixed thickness of 1 mm. Cross-sectional scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy reveal the formation of an approximately 100 μm thick near-surface wood–inorganic hybrid region, in which Ga and O signals coexist within the coated wood structure. Compared with uncoated wood, the β-Ga2O3-containing coating consistently reduces the transmitted X-ray-induced current for all wood species, leading to improved shielding efficiency. Notably, cedar, the lowest density wood, exhibits the largest relative improvement after coating, indicating that a thin inorganic coating can effectively compensate for the intrinsically limited attenuation of lightweight wood cores while imposing only a modest mass penalty. These results demonstrate a practical wood–inorganic composite architecture for lightweight soft X-ray shielding and suggest that low-density wood substrates can provide a favorable mass–performance balance when combined with β-Ga2O3-based surface hybridization.
SN - 2470-1343
ER -