Crystal growth, structural and optical properties of an organic ion-complex crystal: 4-N,N-dimethylamino-4′-N′-methylstilbazolium iodide

4-N,N-dimethylamino-4′-N′-methylstilbazolium iodide (DMSI) compound was synthesized by Knoevenagel reaction method and the crystals were grown by solution growth method. From the single crystal X-ray diffraction study, it is confirmed that DMSI crystal belongs to monoclinic system. The bond-length alternation (BLA) of the DMSI molecule was found to be 0.11 Å, which is responsible for quadratic NLO response. The electronic transition properties and optical constants such as energy gap (Eg), linear refractive index (n1) were determined using UV–visible and photoluminescence spectral studies. The second order nonlinear optical property of the crystal was examined using Kurtz–Perry powder test. Laser induced damage threshold on (0 0 1) plane of the optically polished crystal was found to be 1.24 GW/cm2.