SAXS studies of phase separation in borate glasses and structural transformations in precursors of silica glass

Applications of SAXS to structural studies of oxide glasses are reviewed. The evolution in the basic understanding of the mechanisms involved in microphase separation in borate glasses is presented. Experimental SAXS results and their comparison with classical theories of spinodal decomposition and more recent statistical theories are discussed. Other applications of SAXS, such as the structural characterization of the ''sol-gel route'' to obtain silica glasses is outlined. (orig.)