A non-vacuum growth technique for pure cubic PbF2 crystal was reported in this paper. It used a chemical as a scavenger to deprive the oxygen impurities in the raw materials and growth system and realized the growth of PbF2 crystals under non-vacuum conditions. The needle-like defect existing in lead fluoride crystals was identified to be an orthorhombic phase of PbF2 crystal. It can be eliminated effectively when annealed within a reduction atmosphere and at a temperature higher than 365degreesC. PbF2 crystals grown with this method are characterized with a wide transparent region from 240 nm to 16.7 mum, a good energy resolution of 3.2%/rootE, and a very high radiation hardness. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.