Silver Photochemical reactivity under electronic irradiation of Zinc-Phosphate and Sodium Gallo-Phosphate glasses

In the present work, the effect of electron irradiations on silver-containing phosphate glasses using a 2.5 MeV electron beam has been explored by Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) and luminescence spectroscopy. The process involved in the interaction of electron beam with both the silver-containing and silver-free phosphate glass matrix and the formation of colored centers is discussed. This allowed an understanding of the initial phenomena of electron deposition and charge trapping that supports the photosensitivity of these glasses by identifying the point defects and the Ag species. The effect of the silver concentration and the structure of the glass depending on the integrated dose have been investigated. The in-situ cathodoluminescence measurements give additional valuable information about the cascade of chemical reactions in the formation of new silver species, namely from the initial silver ions to the molecular silver clusters.