Rare-earth Induced Nano-crystallization Study of Borate Glass System

The study of the physical and structural properties of rare-earth doped borate glasses is discussed in this chapter. The glasses have been synthesized using the conventional melt quenching technique. X-ray diffractometer has been used to determine the amorphous nature of the prepared glass samples. Upon closer inspection of the XRD patterns, it is observed that the peak width changes, which indicates that the increase in the concentration of rare earth induces a localized devitrification of the prepared glasses around the rare earth. To investigate the structural dependence on the chemical composition of the manufactured glass, various parameters were determined. The molecular vibrations and rotations related to covalent bonds found in the glasses were studied using the infrared spectrum. 

Keywords: Borate glass, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Nano-crystallization, Rare-earth, X-ray diffraction.