Effects of 80 KeV proton radiation on the optical properties and microstructure of type-GG17 glass as rubidium lamp envelope

Effect of 80 KeV proton radiation with fluences of 1014–2 × 1016 protons/cm2 on the optical properties and microstructure of type-GG17 borosilicate glass as a candidate material for rubidium spectra lamp envelope was investigated. The change in microstructure before and after proton radiation was evaluated by means of UV–vis–NIR spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and positron annihilation lifetime spectrometer (PALS). The experimental results show that under radiation of 80 KeV some broken Si–O bonds were induced and thus the number of non-bridge oxygen (NBO) increased. These irradiation-induced defects caused the degeneration of optical property and loosened glass structure which accelerates rubidium diffusion into lamp envelop.