Thorough analysis of bismuth-containing silicate glasses: Evaluation of optical and radiation-shielding properties

This paper conducts an extensive analysis of silicate-based glasses with varying Bi2O3 content, employing experimental method to evaluate the optical properties and theoretical method to evaluate the radiationshielding characteristics. The increase in ion concentration with higher BaO content leads to bridging oxygen bond disruption and increased field strength. The optical properties show an increased refractive index and dielectric constant with greater Bi2O3 levels. The radiation shielding properties of the prepared glasses were evaluated using Phy-X software over a broad energy range of 0.015-15 MeV. Among the studied glass samples, the one with 54 % bismuth oxide (Bi2O3) demonstrated the highest mass attenuation coefficient value (96.565 cm2/g) at 0.015 MeV, highlighting its superior radiation-shielding efficiency. The glass with the highest bismuth oxide content (54 %) demonstrated the lowest required thickness for effective radiation shielding, particularly at 0.015 MeV. The effective atomic number was highest for the glass with 54 % bismuth oxide, particularly at 0.015 MeV, reflecting the impact of increased bismuth oxide content on shielding efficiency. The mean free path (MFP) of the sample containing 54 mol% Bi2O3 (coded as Bi54Si26) was found to be 0.0059 cm at 0.03 MeV, 0.0894 cm at 0.15 MeV, 0.720 cm at 0.4 MeV, and 3.279 cm at 2 MeV. These values highlight the significant variation in MFP with increasing photon energy, demonstrating the energy-dependent shielding efficiency of the glass.