The effect of nickel additive and ion irradiation on the structural and optical properties of lithium borate glasses

The study investigates the impact of nickel oxide (NiO) doping (0%, 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3% wt%) on the glass composition 85B2O3-15Li2O using the melt quenching technique. Both X-ray diffraction (XRD) and FTIR confirm the amorphous nature and functional groups. Density, molar volume, average boron separation, ion concentration, interionic distance, polaron radius,. UV-visible absorption (200-1100 nm) was also recorded before and after nitrogen ion beam irradiation (fluence: 8x1017 and 16x1017 ion/cm2). Results indicate a decrease in the optical energy gap (Eoptical gap) and an increase in Urbach's energy (EU) with higher NiO content, especially post-irradiation. Nitrogen ion irradiation at higher doses (16x1017 ion/cm2) induces more significant effects, attributed to increased non-bridging oxygen species (NBOs) formation and finally dielectric parameters were measured from 100 Hz to 100 kHz. Overall, the ability to tailor borate glass properties via nitrogen ion irradiation holds promise for diverse technological applications in optoelectronics, photonics, sensors, and radiation detection