Structure of heat-treated sol-gel SiO2 glasses containing silver

The crystallization of bulk amorphous SiO2 samples, prepared by the sol-gel method, was obtained by heat treatments in air at temperatures as low as 5 00 degreesC, This occurs when silver is added to the precursor solutions in an amount such that it forms aggregates embedded in the glass. Another req uirement to observe the low-temperature glass crystallization is that the b ulk samples must be prepared from precursor solutions with specific composi tions. These compositions, have a high H2O/TEOS ratio, which produces an am orphous SiO2 structure with some structural similarities to cristobalite, t he phase in which the SiO2 glass crystallizes.