The effect of CuO and MgO impurities on the optical properties of lithium potassium borate glass

Previous study proved the efficiency of copper as one of the most luminescent activators. In this work, Li2CO3-K2CO3-H3BO3 (LKB) glasses co-doped with copper oxide (CuO) and magnesium oxide (MgO) have been prepared by chemical quenching technique. Two techniques have been applied to investigate the effect of co-dopants on the physical and optical properties of the new glass network. The X-ray Diffraction (XRD) results showed the amorphous nature of the sample. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra, energy band gap, density, ion concentration, molar volume, Polaron radius and inter-nuclear distance have been analyzed in the light of the different oxidation states of co-doped ions in the glass matrix. The exchange in the concentration of magnesium and copper ions illustrated the great effect of magnesium as a co-dopant on the Photoluminescence (PL) emission of LKB doped with copper oxide. Due to the change in the copper concentration, a broad green emission with intensity of around 300 (a.u) has been observed. Enhancement of about three times has been shown with the increment of 0.1 mol% of CuO and MgO as a co-dopant technique. It is well known that magnesium oxide alone does not show strong-luminescence, but during this increment, MgO acted as activator (co-dopant) for Cu ions. This enhancement may contribute to the energy transfer from Mg2+ ions to monovalent Cu+ ion. The current results are discussed and compared with other related studies. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.