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.