Transparent glass ceramics: Preparation, characterization and properties

Abstract Transparent glass ceramics were prepared in the system Li2OAl2O3SiO2, MgOAl2O3SiO2 and ZnOAl2O3SiO2 using TiO2, ZrO2 and P2O5 as nucleators. The major crystalline phases in these samples were spinel, gahnite, s-quartz solid solutions and a petalite-like phase. These were doped with chromium(III), and spectroscopic properties were measured. The efficiency of luminescence in these glass ceramics was very high compared with that in glass samples, i.e. about 50% in s-quartz, 75% in the petalite-like phase and close to 100% in gahnite. For practical purposes the results may be important in designing luminescent solar concentrators and lasers based on chromium(III).