UCF researchers created “self-healing” glass that repairs itself after gamma radiation exposure—a breakthrough. Glass in harsh settings like space may change with this discovery.
All thanks to UCF College of Optics and Photonics (CREOL) Pegasus Professor Kathleen Richardson and her team for bringing self-healing glass closer to reality. Their paper in the Materials Research Society Bulletin shows how specialised chalcogenide glass may repair itself after gamma radiation.
Sensors and infrared lenses use chalcogenide glasses produced from sulphur, selenium, tellurium, germanium, and arsenic. They found that gamma radiation caused minute flaws in this germanium, antimony, and sulphur glass, which mended at ambient temperature.
Gamma-exposed electronics like spacecraft and radioactive facilities could benefit from self-healing glass. This discovery also lays the framework for understanding how other chalcogenide glasses self-heal, expanding study and applications.
Richardson and her colleagues expertly measured and made the chalcogenide glass to avoid moisture and oxygen. MIT created thin films from the glass for testing.
Germanium, a common infrared material, is scarce and expensive. Chalcogenide glasses’ optical transparency and customisation make them an attractive option.
“These glasses are distinct from conventional glasses, such as in windows or eyeglasses,” Richardson explains. “They exclude oxygen, making them superior for infrared applications.”
Beyond current uses, self-healing glass has potential. Myungkoo Kang, an assistant professor at Alfred University and former UCF colleague, aims to study chalcogenide ceramic irradiation effects. He wants to create lightweight optical platform materials.
Kang and Richardson describe their work as making a “soup” of sulphur, selenium, and tellurium as the base with germanium, arsenic, and antimony as “spices” to change glass characteristics.
The research team worked tirelessly for years on this revolutionary project at numerous colleges.
Kang: “We shipped samples back and forth between various locations. “This work took almost five years of teamwork. I’m glad this work is finally published.”
The creation of self-healing glass that heals itself after gamma radiation exposure advances material science. Its potential uses in space travel and other severe situations make it a breakthrough finding.
