Abstract
Glass composition of (0.15-x)LiF-0.15NaF-0.01Al(2)O(3)-0.24SiO(2)-0.45B(2)O(3)-xTm(2)O(3), in which x varies from 0.01 to 0.08, has been prepared by melt-annealing technique. The glass density values increased as thulium content increases from 2.359 to 2.735 g/cm(3). The structure of glass showed the presence of trigonal BO3, O2B-F, tetrahedral BO4, O3B-F units, Si-O-Si, B-O-Si, and B-O-B linkages. The optical properties of the prepared glass were investigated. The optical absorption spectra revealed four characteristic bands in the ultraviolet and near-infrared regions for thulium ions. Judd-Ofelt parameters such as omega(2), omega(4), and omega(6) were calculated and took the order of omega(2) > omega(6) > omega(4). The radiative transition probability, branching ratio, and radiative lifetime were deduced from the Judd-Ofelt parameters. Moreover, the optical transition, refractive index, and phonon energy were calculated to show the effect of thulium content on borosilicate glass.