Fluoroindate glasses

The compositions, properties and concepts of the structure of fluoroindate glasses are considered. These glasses are characterised by low phonon energies and hence very low theoretical optical losses in the IR region. According to the vibrational spectroscopic data, the degree of polymerisation of octahedra in fluoroindate glasses is lower than in fluorogallate and fluoroaluminate glasses. The compositions of fluoroindate glasses containing up to nine components cannot be regarded as being completely optimised. Comparative analysis of the chemical and thermal stability of fluoroindate and fluorozirconate glasses was performed. It is shown that the high susceptibility of indium fluoride to hydrolysis accounts for the instability of glasses and optical losses. The prospects for the use of fluoroindate glasses in lasers, fibre optics and scintillation instruments are discussed. The bibliography includes 157 references.