Durable BaO–ZnO–P2O5 glass with small stress-induced birefringence for lead-free polarization light-controlling devices
Résumé
Barium zinc phosphate glasses formulated in the xBaO–(60 − x)ZnO–40P2O5 composition line are investigated for their optical, thermal, and chemical characteristics. These as well as small stress-induced birefringence were found to be governed by the BaO/ZnO substitution. In addition to the characterization of the properties, the phosphate network was qualitatively and quantitatively described in terms of Q2 and Q1 ratios by 1D 31P magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy experiments that also showed the presence of Q0 sites. It turns out that the small perturbations of their photoelastic, magnetic, and chemical characteristics made these glasses very good candidates for use in polarization-controlling optical devices.