Optical nonlinearities in LiKBO-AgO and LiKBO-AgO-GdO glasses containing Ag nanoparticles.

The results on optical studies of LiKBO-AgO and LiKBO-AgO-GdO glasses containing Ag nanoparticles formed during annealing in vacuum and air are presented. Strong bands that appear in optical transmission spectra of the samples correspond to plasmon excitations associated with Ag nanoparticles. The average radius of Ag nanoparticles was retrieved from FWHM of the plasmon bands and found to be 1.

The Electronic Structure and Secondary Pyroelectric Properties of Lithium Tetraborate.

We review the pyroelectric properties and electronic structure of Li₂B₄O₇(110) and Li₂B₄O₇(100) surfaces. There is evidence for a pyroelectric current along the [110] direction of stoichiometric Li₂B₄O₇ so that the pyroelectric coefficient is nonzero but roughly 10³ smaller than along the [001] direction of spontaneous polarization. Abrupt decreases in the pyroelectric coefficient along the [110] direction can be correlated with anomalies in the elastic stiffness contributing to the concept that the pyroelectric coefficient is not simply a vector but has qualities of a tensor, as expected.