Growth and characterization of nonlinear optical diglycinehydrobromide single crystals

Diglycinehydrobromide (DGHB) a semi-organic nonlinear optical material with the molecular formula C4H11N2O4+Br− has been synthesized at ambient temperature. Chemical composition of the synthesized material was confirmed by CHN analysis. Functional groups present in the sample were identified by FT-IR and Raman spectral analysis. Bulk single crystals of DGHB were grown by slow evaporation method at constant temperature. Powder X-ray diffraction pattern of the grown DGHB has been indexed. Unit cell parameters of the grown DGHB crystals were determined. Thermal stability of DGHB was determined from TGA/DTA and DSC response curves. Mechanical hardness of the grown crystal DGHB was determined and Vickers hardness number was calculated. The optical transparency and the lower cutoff of UV transmission were identified from the recorded UV–vis–IR spectrum of DGHB. The Kurtz powder second harmonic generation test shows that the crystal is a potential candidate for optical second harmonic generation.