Dynamic light scattering in low connectivity phosphate glass melts crosslinked by Na or Zn

Abstract

Dynamic light scattering was performed to measure the structural relaxation in sodium and zinc phosphate glass-forming melts in the range from 50 mol% to 40 mol% P2O5 where long polymer-like chains of PO4 tetrahedra are systematically shortened in length. The findings reveal compositional changes in the non-exponentiality of the relaxation as well as in the glass fragility, the latter of which exhibits anomalous differences between sodium and zinc.