Effect of ZnS nanoparticles on the optical properties of Sm3+ ions in silicate matrix

ZnS and Sm3+-doped ZnS nanoparticles (NPs) in silicate glasses were prepared by sol-gel technique. X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and photoluminescence (PL) emission spectra were used to analyze the sample's morphology and crystal structure. UV–visible absorption spectra and PL emission spectra were used to look at the sample's optical characteristics. The formation of NBO and the elimination of the OH-group are confirmed by the FTIR spectra analysis. The XRD, SEM and TEM measurements confirmed that our glass sample is a nano-crystal. Optical absorption spectra have been used to evaluate three phenomenological Judd-Ofelt (JO) parameters Ωλ (λ = 2, 4, 6) to determine the local structure and bonding surrounding Sm3+ ions. Glasses containing SSZ5 are found to have the highest parameter Ω2, which shows the covalency of the Sm-O bond, followed in decreasing order by glasses containing SSZ3 and SSZ1. This result implies that the coordination environment surrounding the Sm3+ ions site is less centro-symmetric and more asymmetric in glass containing ZnS. For the glasses under investigation, the covalent character of the Sm-O bond is shown by the positive values of the bonding parameter δ. Four emission bands were seen in the PL spectra obtained at an excitation wavelength of 450 nm. Glass samples containing SSZ5 are shown to have greater radiative characteristics, such as branching ratio (βR) and stimulated emission cross-section (σ), as well as potential emission band intensity. However all other prepared glasses, however, have been shown to be efficient lasing materials, indicating their appropriateness for the development of photonic materials that emit radiations in the range of blue to white regions. The Figure of Merit (FOM) results suggest that the prepared glasses might be used as optical amplifiers.