In this report, growth of Yb-doped sesqui-oxide crystals of Y2O3, Sc2O3, and Lu2O3 by the micro-pulling-down technique and their scintillation performance are discussed. Growth of these crystals is difficult mostly as a result of their extremely high melting point of around 2400 degrees C. Nevertheless, appropriate design of the thermal zone and careful control of the growth parameters allowed fabrication of these crystals of reasonable quality. Based on the results of measurements of emission spectra under alpha-ray excitation and pulse height spectra under alpha-ray and gamma-ray excitations, scintillation characteristics of above crystals including emission wavelength and light yields under alpha-ray and gamma-ray excitations were examined. Additionally, decay kinetics of these materials under alpha-ray excitation were evaluated. (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.