Kinetics characterization of erbium-doped tellurite glass

The thermal characteristics of the quaternary TeO2-ZnO-Na2O-Er(2)O3 glass system as a function of rising Er2O3 mol% have been studied from the kinetic point of view. Differential scanning calorimetry technique under non-isochronal conditions at various heating rates has been used to define the characteristic temperatures of the glasses (i.e. glass transition, crystallization) in addition to the glass stability parameters. The activation energies required for both the glass transition and amorphous to crystalline transformation have been computed by different methods. The mode of the glass crystallization has been determined in terms of the Avrami kinetic constant to identify the crystallization succession. Quantitative analysis of the thermal characteristics and kinetic parameters of the glass were achieved in terms of cross-linking density, number of bonds, and the bond stretching force.