Optimization of host glass composition to make soda borosilicate glasses doped with reduced rare earth ions

Soda borosilicate glasses with various compositions containing 1 mol% of Sm3þ were prepared in a reductive atmosphere to reduce Sm3þ ions. For the glass preparation, a multi-sample glass-formation tester was adopted. This apparatus is capable of handling 24 samples at once. The existence of thermally reduced Sm2þ was confirmed by their fluorescent emission spectrum. By using compositional combinatorial approach, the glass-forming region and the optimal region for reducing Sm3þ ions were determined in a ternary compositional diagram of soda borosilicate system. It was found that both regions overlapped each other and located near B2O3-rich side of the diagram. # 2003 Published by Elsevier B.V