Vibrational spectra and structure of bismuth based quaternary glasses

Quaternary bismuthate glasses containing Li2O, ZnO and B2O3 have been prepared by melt quench technique and studied by density, DSC, IR and Raman spectroscopy. Raman and infrared spectroscopy have been employed to investigate the (75 - x)Bi2O3-xLi(2)O-10ZnO-15B(2)O(3) glasses in order to obtain information about the competitive role of Bi2O3 and B2O3 in the formation of glass network. The increase of Bi2O3 content causes a progressive conversion of three- to four-fold coordinated boron. IR and Raman spectra show that these glasses are made up of [BiO3] pyramidal and [BiO6] octahedral units. The formation of Zn in tetrahedral coordination was observed. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.