Optical and gamma-ray shielding properties of lead phosphate glasses by controlled copper oxide doping

Copper oxide-doped lead phosphate glasses following the composition 25PbO-(75-x)P₂O₅-xCuO, where x ≤ 0.1 mol.%, were prepared using conventional melt-quenching technique and comprehensively characterized. The prepared glass samples underwent extensive analysis to determine their physical characteristics, including density, molar volume, packing density, and free volume for each composition. Optical properties were thoroughly investigated, including the optical energy gap, refractive index, permittivity, optical dielectric constant, molar refraction, reflection loss, molar polarizability, and electric susceptibility. The Phy-X/PSD software was used to estimate radiation shielding parameters such as linear attenuation coefficient, mass attenuation coefficient, half-value layer, and related quantities. The effects of varying CuO concentrations on the physical, optical, and radiation shielding characteristics were meticulously examined and discussed. The findings highlight the potential applications of CuO-doped lead phosphate glasses in optics and radiation shielding domains. These glasses show promise for optical and shielding applications based on the results obtained.