Nucleation kinetic studies of a europium-doped aluminosilicate glass: Low-frequency inelastic scattering and fluorescence line narrowing

An investigation of low-frequency inelastic scattering and fluorescence line narrowing has revealed the role of Eu³⁺ in the nucleation process. Analysis of the results has shown that the Eu³⁺ accelerates nucleation; however, it is not incorporated into the microcrystalline phase. Polarization studies have shown that the nucleating agents Eu³⁺ and Cr³⁺ modify the size of the microcrystallites and the symmetry of the vibrational eigenmodes. The results show that the vibrational eigenmodes for the Cr³⁺-doped glass are mainly breathing modes, whereas for the Eu³⁺-doped and undoped glass they are spheroidal and/or torsional modes.