Synthesis and Characterization of Complex Chalcogenide Glasses*

Chalcogenide glasses are important in today’s society due to their numerous useful properties such as Near- and Mid-IR transparency, large refractive indices, and large optical nonlinearity. Multicomponent or complex chalcogenide glasses are known to possess a phase change memory effect under elevated temperatures, pressures, electric shock, or photo exposure. Novel complex chalcogenide glasses (Ge-Ga-P-Sb-Se-Te) were prepared with varying P content (1-9%) to study structural, electrical, and optical properties. The amorphous nature of the samples was verified with the X-Ray Powder Diffraction Method. The crystallization behavior was studied using Differential Scanning Calorimetry. As shown by optical spectroscopy, the prepared glasses are transparent within the 1-23 µm range, making them especially suitable for telecommunication.