Transmission properties of heavy-germanate glasses as hosts for scintillating rare earths

In this work a set of heavy-germanate glasses used as hosts for scintillating rare earths are analysed. Glasses were prepared from GeO2, BaO, Gd2O3, and SnO2 (or La2O3) as starting materials. Some glasses contain certain amounts of Ce2O3, which introduces Ce3+ activator ions in the matrices. Special attention was paid to the influence of the glass composition on transmission properties in the ultraviolet and visible spectral regions; the relationship between the ultraviolet absorption edge and the content of the metals present in the glass structure is discussed. The irradiation resistance of samples was valued by comparing their transmission spectra before and after irradiation. An improvement in radiation resistance was observed when cerium was added in the glass composition. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.