Composition dependence of thermo-dynamical and thermo-mechanical properties in SeTeSnGe chalcogenide glasses (ChGs)

In this endeavor, we have synthesized novel quaternary glassy Se78-xTe20Sn2Gex (0 ≤ x ≤ 6) alloys by the well-known rapid cooling of melt under quenching technique, to study the effect of Germanium on thermodynamic and thermo-mechanical properties. In particular, we employed Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) technique for the investigation of thermodynamic parameters (e.g., specific heat Cp and enthalpy ΔH) in the glass-transition-region (GTR). Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) experiment was run under non-isothermal conditions. The thermo-mechanical parameters i.e., micro-hardness, micro-void volume, the energy of creation of micro-void, elasticity, density, compactness, and molar volume are also calculated. It was observed that there is a large increment in Cp values in the GTR. Further analysis shows that the Cp values above the GTR (i.e., Cp = Cpe equilibrium specific heat) and below the GTR (i.e., Cp = Cpg glass specific heat) are vastly composition dependent. The increment in specific heat value after Ge incorporation is explained in terms of molar volume