Electrical transport properties of 0.5Li2O–0.5M2O–2B2O3 (M = Li, Na and K) glasses

Transparent glasses in the system 0.5Li2O-0.5M2O-2B2O3 (M=Li, Na and K) were fabricated via the conventional melt quenching technique. Amorphous and glassy nature of the samples were confirmed via the X-ray powder diffraction and the differential scanning calorimetry, respectively. The frequency and temperature dependent characteristics of the dielectric relaxation and the electrical conductivity were investigated in the 100 Hz - 10 MHz frequency range. The imaginary part of the electric modulus spectra was modeled using an approximate solution of Kohrausch-Williams-Watts relation. The stretching exponent, β, was found to be temperature independent for 0.5Li2O-0.5Na2O-2B2O3 (LNBO) glasses. The activation energy associated with DC conductivity was found to be higher (1.25eV) for 0.5Li2O-0.5K2O-2B2O3 (LKBO) glasses than that of the other glass systems under study. This could be attributed to the mixed cationic effect.