Effect of Nb₂O₅ addition to SnO–P₂O₅ glass

Abstract

SnO–P₂O₅ glasses have high refractive index and low glass transition temperature but have poor water durability. To improve water durability, NbO_2.5 was added to SnO–P₂O₅ glasses, preparing SnO–NbO_2.5–P₂O₅ glass. It was found that addition of only 4 mol % NbO_2.5 was enough to achieve significant improvement of water durability, and at the same time, no degradation in thermal and optical properties was observed.