Formation and stability of glasses with ultra-optical properties in TiO2–Bi2O3–PbO system

Abstract

To obtain ultra-optical property in glasses, as the basis for photonic applications, the glass forming region of TiO₂–Bi₂O₃–PbO system was investigated and determined by melting series of compositions in the system. The glass-forming boundary region was defined. The best compositions for glass formation were found to be around the eutectic and peritectic regions in the corresponding phase diagram. Generally, stability increased with the addition of TiO₂, acting as a conditional glass former, to a maximum of 15TiO₂ mol %. Replacing PbO with Bi₂O₃ in the glass worsened the stability, due to the increase of heavy cation Bi^3– in the glass structure. Finally, the refractive index and dispersion of some stable glasses were measured, which were as high as 2.435 and 10.2, respectively.