Thermoluminescence in Vitreous Sodium Silicate

Abstract

Vitreous sodium silicate has two quite distinct thermoluminescence maxima between 20° and 250°C, each having its own spectral composition (about 420 and 515 mμ, respectively). The peaks have equal activation energies (about 0.8 eV). It seems likely that, between 20° and 250°C, the thermoluminescence emission model for vitreous sodium silicate is a recombination of electrons trapped in a single energy level, with centers that probably consist of positive holes having different capture cross sections. For the low-temperature thermoluminescence, Kikuchi's suggestion appears to have been confirmed.