Radiation Hardening of Strengthened Optical Fibers and Development of New Fluoride Glasses.
Abstract
Two independent studies were conducted under this contract: (1) Radiation hardening of compressively strengthened optical fibers; (2) Development of new fluoride glasses. In the first study two preform fabrication processes based on phase separable, leachable alkali borosilicate glasses were evaluated for producing radiation hardened fibers. The first process, known as partial leaching, was found to yield low numerical aperture fibers with moderately high attenuation. Ultra-clean glass melting facilities and extensive composition studies would be required to correct these faults. This was beyond the resources of the contract. The second process, known as molecular stuffing, was used to produce alkali-modified high silica glasses doped with cerium oxide as a radiation hardening agent. Radiation damage kinetic tests were run on these glasses by irradiating the samples with 4-40 ns pulses of 15 MeV electrons and observing the absorption spectra for the time range 0.0000001 sec to 0.1 sec following the electron pulses. The results of these tests show that cerium is not effective, within the time range studies, in suppressing the radiation induced absorption for the high silica glasses tested. In the second study, under this contract, glasses in the HfF4-BaF2-LaF3 family were studied. The effects on glass forming of additions including PbF2, CsF, GdF3 and AlF3 glass was studied.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 1982
- Accession Number
- ADA115910
Entities
People
- A. Barkatt
- C. T. Moynihan
- H. Hojaji
- J. H. Simmons
- R. K. Mohr
Organizations
- The Catholic University of America