Sb induced effect on glass transition, crystallization kinetics and optical properties of Se96Sn4 alloy

Abstract

Se96-xSn4Sbx (x = 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8) glassy alloys were prepared using the melt quench technique. Thermal measurements were carried out using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) in non-isothermal mode. Kissinger and Moynihan methods are used for glass transition kinetics, while Kissinger, Takhor, and Augis-Bennet methods are used to study crystallization kinetics. The inclusion of Sb in the alloy increased the glass transition temperature (Tg), activation energy of the glass transition (Et), and activation energy of crystallisation (Ec). The chemical bond approach has been used to explain the results. The rising trend of Ec is explained by the production of SnSe4/2 structural units with energies greater than those of Se–Se and Se–Sb bonds, increasing the degree of cross-linking. The dimensionality of crystal growth changes from one to two with the addition of Sb to the Se-Sn alloy. The criterion for thermal stability was addressed by using the enthalpy emitted during the crystallization process. In addition, Kubelka-Munk transformation and Tauc plots were used to calculate the band gaps. The energy gap (Eg) decreases from 3.72 to 1.60 eV as the Sb concentration increases from 0 to 8 atm%.