Vacuum ultraviolet excitation spectra of the 1.9 eV luminescence in neutron irradiated KU1 and KS-4V quartz glasses and Infrasil 301

Abstract

The photoluminescence emission around 1.9 eV, excited from the ultraviolet to vacuum ultraviolet was investigated in neutron irradiated silica (at 1021 and 1022 n/m2 fluences) with different OH and impurity content: KU1 and KS-4V high purity silica and Infrasil 301. The measurements were made at different temperatures from 300K to 10K. The three irradiated silica grades show similar excitation spectra shape, although the band intensities are different depending on silica grade and temperature. Neutron irradiated KU1, with the highest OH content, shows the highest red emission attributed to nonbridging oxygen hole centers (NBOHCs). The excitation profile, from 4.0 to 8.8 eV, has two bands, which are centered around 4.85 eV and 6.5 eV. The band intensities increase with decreasing temperature from 300 to 10K for the three types of silica.