The shape of the gamma resonance absorption peak of the Eu3+ ion in a
disordered structure was investigated in some phosphate, berate, and s
ilicate glasses by using Eu-151 Mossbauer spectroscopy. The quality of
the fits was tested by using the Durbin-Watson d statistics. The obse
rved full width at half maximum of the peak was resolved in a contribu
tion of the broadening and a contribution of the quadrupole splitting,
due to the distortion of the Eu site compared to a cubic symmetry. Th
e Eu-O bond was found to have a covalent admixture with 6s character.
The axial component of the electric-field gradient at the Eu site was
found to be correlated with the optical basicity of the glass.