Impact of CdO on optical, physical, and radiation resistance of sodium borophosphate glasses

This article focuses on exploring the effects of CdO on the optical, radiation, and physical characteristics of sodium borophosphate glass with different compositions. The glass compositions included B2O3, Na2O, P2O5, and varying content of CdO from 0 to 12 mol %. One of the observed effects of adding CdO to the glass composition is a substantial increase in glass density. The density increased from 3.42 g/cm(3) to 4.87 g/cm(3) as the CdO increased. UV-visible spectroscopy was utilized to determine the optical bandgap and other correlated physical parameters. Bandgap values increased from 2.39 to 2.74 eV for E(opt)(ind )and from 2.51 to 2.82 eV for E-opt(di). Connections between the optical and physical characteristics of CdNaBP glasses are discussed. Moreover, different shielding parameters were assessed using Phy-X simulation software. This study explores the importance of radiation shielding efficiency and the positive impact of higher CdO content on photon blocking in sodium borophosphate glasses. The addition of CdO enhances the radiation shielding capabilities of this glass. Additionally, the study explored the gamma shielding properties. Hence, all these observations infer that the CdNaBP-12 glass sample is the most suitable for transparent radiation shielding applications.