Transparent Glass-Ceramic Materials Based on Lead Fluoroborate Glasses Co-Activated by Eu/Gd.

Transparent glass-ceramic materials co-activated by Eu3+/Gd3+ were obtained by heat treatment of the initial lead fluoroborate glasses. It was found that the rare-earth ions in the obtained transparent samples are located in nanoparticles of lead fluoride cubic crystals, distributed in the bulk of the glass. It was shown that Eu3+ ions are situated in a highly symmetric local environment and that the introduction of a second activator increases the nanocrystalline phase fraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]