Gamma ray irradiation effects on the optical properties of BaO–Na2O–B2O3–SiO2 glasses

This paper reports the effect of gamma radiation on the optical absorption spectra of xBaO–Na2O–(70−x) B2O3–SiO2 glass system with x = 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 (mol%) recorded in spectral range from 200 to 900 nm at room temperature. The optical absorption edge, optical band gap and Urbach energy were determined from the absorption spectra before and after irradiation. Changes occurring in the optical parameters of these glasses have been associated with radiation induced structural defects and compositional changes.