NANOSYSTEMS: PHYSICS, CHEMISTRY, MATHEMATICS, 2016, 7 (3), P. 534–537
Effect of surfactant concentration and solvent used for washing in the preparation of Yb:Y2O3 transparent ceramics
Pratik Deshmukh – Nano Functional Materials Laboratory, Laser Materials Development & Devices Division, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore 452013, India; ppdeshmukh@rrcat.gov.in
S. Satapathy – Nano Functional Materials Laboratory, Laser Materials Development & Devices Division, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore 452013, India; srinu73@rrcat.gov.in
M. K. Singh – Nano Functional Materials Laboratory, Laser Materials Development & Devices Division, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore 452013, India
P. K. Gupta – Nano Functional Materials Laboratory, Laser Materials Development & Devices Division, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore 452013, India
Nanoparticles of Yb:Y2O3 have been synthesized by coprecipitation synthesis routes. The (NH4)2SO4 surfactant was added to Y(OH)3 precipitate during synthesis to control the size, morphology, agglomeration and phase of nanoparticles. The dried precipitates were calcined at 900 °C to obtain the desired cubic phase Yb:Y2O3 nano particles. In the present study we reported the effects of surfactant concentration on size, morphology, agglomeration and phase of Yb:Y2O3 nanoparticles. However the addition of surfactant is not enough to get non-agglomerated nanoparticles. The extracted precipitate should be washed in proper solvent to avoid formation of hard agglomerate during drying. Hence the effects of washing solvent (i.e. water and methanol) on agglomeration and transparency were also reported. The transparency of the sintered pellets, prepared by varying the surfactant concentration and washing solvent, was evaluated. A transparency of 80 % at 1500 nm was achieved in 1 mm thick Yb:Y2O3 ceramic pellet by optimization of the surfactant and washing solvent.
Keywords: transparent ceramics, Yb:Y2O3, surfactant.
PACS 81.20.Ev; 78.67.Bf; 42.70.Hj
DOI 10.17586/2220-8054-2016-7-3-534-537