Thermal, mechanical, optical and conductivity studies of a novel NLO active l-phenylalanine l-phenylalaninium dihydrogenphosphate single crystal

An efficient, novel, semi-organic, nonlinear optical (NLO) material l-phenylalanine l-phenylalaninium dihydrogenphosphate (LPADHP), single crystal of dimension 11×5×2 mm3, has been grown by the slow evaporation solution growth technique. Single crystal X-ray diffraction studies confirm that the grown crystal belongs to monoclinic system with the space group P21. The functional groups present in the crystal were confirmed by the Fourier transform infrared technique. Optical absorption spectrum shows that the material possesses very low absorption in the entire visible region. Thermal analysis confirmed that the crystal is thermally stable up to 161 °C. The frequency dependent dielectric properties of the grown crystal were studied for various temperatures. The second harmonic generation (SHG) efficiency of the grown crystal is 1.2 times greater than that of the potassium dihydrogenphosphate (KDP) single crystal. The laser induced surface damage threshold for the grown crystal was found to be 6.3 GW cm−2 with Nd:YAG laser assembly AC and DC conductivity and photoconductivity experiments are also carried out and the results are discussed.