Preparation of Lithium tetraborate nanocrystals by melt-quenching method and their characterization

The Lithium tetraborate has(LTB) has received great attention worldwide due to its extensive use in nonlinear optics for identifying the frequency converting single crystals to emit light in UV range. Glass ceramics of LTB is suitable for solid state battery application due to fast ion conduction. LTB has a tremendous potential as a radiation-proof material for optical devices. It is also used for radiation dosimetry purpose because of its tissue-equivalent nature. The effectual atomic number of LTB is nearer to soft biological tissue (Z_eff =7.42). Here in the present paper, the pure LTB glass was prepared from melt quenching process. The mixture of Li₂CO₃ and B₂O₃ taken in Stoichiometric ratio was grounded well and packed into a platinum crucible. An electrical muffle furnace was used for melting purpose. To prepare LTB glass the mixture was annealed at various temperatures. The LTB glass was cut and polished for further studies. Characterization of LTB glass samples were done by X-ray diffraction, Scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transforms spectroscopy, and UV-Visible-IR spectrophotometer. LTB nano-crystals were obtained by glass quenching technique (bottom-up approach) at 525°C. The detected crystalline size was found in the range of 28-31 nm. The transmission of the prepared glass is 87% which is suitable for nonlinear optical-based applications.