Synthesis, spectral and thermal characterization of Bis(diethylammonium) tetrachloromercurate(II)-An nonlinear optical material

A new semiorganic compound, bis(diethylammonium) tetrachloromercurate(II) was grown by slow evaporation solution growth technique at ambient temperature from its aqueous solution. The crystal system and the cell parameters have been identified from the powder X-ray diffraction pattern. The UV–visible absorption of the compound shows absorption at 246 nm and there is absorption observed in the entire visible region indicates that the compound can be used as a nonlinear optical material. The UV–visible transmittance spectrum of grown crystal shows a lower cut-off wavelength at 275 nm and it was found that the crystal is suitable for optoelectronic applications. Thermal studies were carried out to find out the thermal stability and confirm the stoichiometric ratio of the compound. The thermal anomalies in DSC study indicate the occurrence of first order transition in the compound at low temperatures. The FTIR spectrum of the compound characterizes various functional groups. The various kinds of protons and carbons were assigned through NMR (1H and 13C) spectroscopic techniques. The SHG efficiency of the compound was studied by Kurtz-Perry power technique and observed that it has SHG efficiency 1.5 times greater than that of potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP). The dielectric constant and dielectric loss of the compound decreases with increase in frequency.