Investigation of Optical, Structural, and Physical Properties of Na2O-Modified V2O5–Bi2O3–ZnO Glass System: Insights into Material Properties

Abstract In this study, a series 50V2O5–15Bi2O3–(35–x)ZnO–xNa2O, where x takes up the values of 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 mol % were synthesized using the melt-quench technique. The physical, optical, and structural properties of the glass series was comprehensively studied using a range of characterization techniques. XRD analysis demonstrated amorphous structure of the glass series. The density and related parameters showed a decrease in the material’s compactness and a loosening of the network structure. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy provided information on the vibrational modes and bonding characteristics, while Raman spectroscopy further elucidated the vibrational signatures of the glass network. The existence of BiO3 pyramidal units and BiO6 octahedral units is confirmed by both Raman and FTIR spectra and presence of VO4 tetrahedral units and VO5 trigonal bipyramids in the glass matrix was also identified. Optical properties such as optical energy bandgap, Urbach energy and cut-off wavelength were studied through UV-Vis spectroscopy. With higher Na2O content, an increase in the optical energy bandgap (1.53–2.09 eV) was observed in the glass series, highlighting the impact of Na2O variation on the optical performance of the glass system. Metallization criterion (0.28–0.32), optical dielectric constant (7.83–6.29), refractive index (2.97–2.70), dielectric constant (8.83–7.29), linear optical susceptibility (0.62–0.50), χ(3) ((0.152–0.063) × 10–10 emu) and β (24.38–19.87 cm/GW) were also determined. The prepared glass samples may have potential application in non-linear optical devices and photonic systems.