Collaborative Research: Structure-Property Relationships of Novel Rare Earth-Ultraphosphate Glasses

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This project is a multi-disciplinary collaboration between materials researchers at the University of Missouri-Rolla (UMR) and physicists at the University of North Dakota (UND) to process and characterize novel rare earth (RE) containing ultraphosphate glasses that possess interesting optical and magnetic properties. The properties of these glasses have an unusual dependence on composition that involves the coordination environment of the RE3+ ions that modify the phosphate glass network. The research team affiliated with the Ceramic Engineering Department and Graduate Center for Materials Research at UMR will prepare optically active glasses (including Nd- and Er-phosphate compositions) and glasses with potentially large magnetic susceptibilities (e.g., Dy-phosphate compositions) using techniques to minimize contamination by water and transition metals. Optical characteristics will be determined at UMR by several techniques, including absorption and emission spectroscopies and fluorescence lifetime measurements, and magnetic properties will be characterized by the research team affiliated with the Physics Department at the UND. Detailed information about the coordination environments of the RE ions will be collected using x-ray absorption spectroscopy and x-ray and neutron diffraction techniques. These experiments will be performed by members of the UND team in collaboration with students and researchers from UMR. The goal of these structural studies is to provide a detailed explanation for the compositional-dependence of the macroscopic properties of these glasses, and then to use this information to design other technologically significant glass compositions.This multi-disciplinary project will provide a detailed understanding of how the molecular-level structure of rare earth-containing glasses affect macroscopic optical and magnetic properties. This information will guide scientists and engineers who use such glasses for new sensors, amplifiers and other devices that have both civilian and defense applications. The collaboration among students and researchers at both institutions will promote the concept that progress in materials research can be best accomplished by diverse, multi-disciplinary teams.