Investigation of glass formation and color properties in the P2O5–TeO2–ZnO system

The compositional dependence of glass-forming tendency and thermal properties was investigated for the P2O5–TeO2–ZnO system with the aid of an automatic sample preparation system including a batch-preparing apparatus and a multi-sample casting machine. The samples exhibited a variety of colors, such as transparent, yellow, wine red and brown depending on composition. Analyses with scanning electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed that the reddish coloration results from a colloidal suspension of nanometer-sized elemental Te particles.