Insights into spectroscopic aspects of Er3+ doped sulfophosphate glass embedded with titania nanoparticles

In this work, the glass system with composition of (59-x)P2O5–20MgO–20ZnSO4–1Er2O3-xTiO2 (where 0=x=0.6 mol%) was prepared using melt-quenching method. The impact of varying titania nanoparticles (TNPs) concentration on the luminescence and self-cleaning properties of the glass system was studied. XRD pattern of prepared glass systems confirmed their amorphous nature. TEM micrographs showed the presence of TiO2 NPs inside the glass matrix. Judd-Ofelt (JO) intensity parameters (O2, O4, and O6) and radiative parameters were evaluated from the measured optical spectra. The value of JO parameters O2, O4, and O6 were ranged between (8.62–6.57) × 10-20 cm2, (2.81–2.26) × 10-20cm2, and (1.31–1.01) × 10-20cm2, respectively. The emission intensity of the glass samples showed up to 5 times enhancement compared with the one without TiO2 NPs. The values of stimulated emission cross-section were varied between (67.18–72.74) × 10-22 cm2 and (48.71–61.97) × 10-22 cm2 for 4F9/2?4I15/2 and 4S3/2?4I15/2, respectively. The self-cleaning characteristics of the glasses was investigated through water contact angle (WCA) and photodegradation rate of methylene blue (MB) measurements. The results revealed that proposed glass samples may be useful in photonic applications