The current work aims to prepare a glass series described by the chemical formula of 20TeO2-35MgO-10GeO2-(35-x) B2O3-xSm2O3, where x = 2.5, 5, and 7.5 mol% for radiation shielding applications. The glass preparation was performed under a melting temperature of 1100 °C, followed by annealing at 350 °C. The X-ray diffraction was used to show the crystalline phase of prepared glasses, which confirms that all prepared samples are amorphous. The ultraviolet-visible absorption spectra for the prepared glass samples were detected using the Shimadzu 3101 spectrophotometer over the wavelength range of 300–1100 nm. Based on the UV/Vis absorption spectrum, several optical properties were determined for the prepared glass samples, including band gap (eV), Urbach energy (eV), refractive index, transmission (%), reflection loss, metallization, optical electronegativity, optical basicity, electron polarizability, and cutoff wavelength (nm). Additionally, the Makishima-Makinze model theory was applied to investigate the mechanical properties of the prepared samples, where the increase of Sm2O3 concentrations within the prepared samples decreases the mechanical moduli while increasing the microhardness of the prepared glass samples. Furthermore, the effect of Sm2O3 addition on the radiation shielding properties of germanium boro-tellurite glasses was examined over the gamma-ray energy range of 0.0332–2.506 MeV using the Monte Carlo simulation technique. The increase in Sm2O3 content enhanced the radiation shielding parameters of prepared glass samples, making these glasses suitable for shielding applications.
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