Study on the growth and characterization of KDP-type crystals

Potassium chloride (KCl) as a new additive was added into the potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) solutions in a small amount (5 M%). The solubility curve and metastable zone width of KDP solution with 5 M% KCl were determined and we explained the mechanism of rapid growth of KDP-type crystals with KCl and NH4Cl as additives, respectively. The clear transparent crystal of KDP with a dimension of 54×54×42 mm3 were grown rapidly by the cooling solution method in 2 days. KDP-type crystals grown were polished at face (0 0 1) for optical measurements. The transmission spectra, Raman spectra, electronic conductivity and the damage thresholds of the crystals were determined and compared, respectively. A new method to determine the deuterium content of DKDP crystal with thermo-gravimetric apparatus is developed in the article which implies the weighing of the initial material and products of thermal decay. This handy method of analysis requires merely 30-50 mg DKDP crystal sample to determine its deuterium content with high accuracy.