Growth and characterization of 4‐(2‐hydroxyphenylamino)‐pent‐3‐en‐2‐one single crystals

4‐(2‐hydroxyphenylamino)‐pent‐3‐en‐2‐one (HPAP) was synthesized and single crystals were grown by the solution growth technique using methanol as a solvent. The crystals having orthorhombic symmetry were characterized by single crystal XRD, FTIR spectroscopy, NMR spectroscopy, TGA, DSC and dielectric studies. Very less variation in the value of dielectric constant is found for different frequencies of applied field. The crystals were exhibiting positive photoconductivity and poor NLO responses. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Characterization of L‐ascorbic acid single crystals grown from solution with different solvents

Single crystals of L‐ascorbic acid, popularly known as vitamin‐C, were grown from solutions with different solvents and solvent combinations by low temperature solution growth methods. The suitability of different solvents and solvent combinations such as acetone, ethanol, methanol, isopropyl alcohol, water, water + acetone (1:1), water + ethanol (3:1), water + isopropyl alcohol (3:1) and isopropyl alcohol + methanol (1:1) for crystal growth of L‐ascorbic acid was found out by assessing the solubility and crystallization behaviours. Solubility of L‐ascorbic acid in selected solvents and solvent combinations in a range of temperatures was determined by gravimetric method. Solution prepared with water, water + acetone (1:1), water + ethanol (3:1) and water + isopropyl alcohol (3:1) were yielded crystals with tabular, columnar and prismatic habits and their morphologies were evaluated by goniometry. Grown single crystals were characterized with various instrumental techniques such as powder X‐ray diffraction, Fourier infrared spectroscopy, optical transmittance study, differential scanning calorimetry and second harmonic generation studies. (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Studies on the structural,thermal and optical behaviour of solution grown organic NLO material: 8‐hydroxyquinoline

Single crystal of 8‐hydroxyquinoline (8HQ) having chemical formula C₉H₇NO, an organic nonlinear optical (NLO) material has been successfully grown by slow evaporation solution growth technique at room temperature. The crystal system has been confirmed from the powder X‐ray diffraction (PXRD) analysis. The crystalline perfection was evaluated by high resolution X‐ray diffractometry (HRXRD). From this analysis we found that the quality of the crystal is quite good. However, a very low angle (tilt angle 14 arc sec) boundary was observed which might be due to entrapping of solvent molecules in the crystal during growth. Its optical behavior has been examined by UV‐Vis. analysis, which shows the absence of absorbance between the wavelengths ranging from 400 to 1200 nm. From the thermal analysis it was observed that the material exhibits single sharp weight loss starting at 113°C without any degradation. The laser damage threshold was measured at single shot mode and the SHG behavior has been tested using Nd:YAG laser as a source. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Growth and characterization of sulphamic acid single crystals grown by Sanakaranarayanan‐Ramasamy (SR) method

By directional solidification, single crystal of Sulphamic acid (SA) was successfully grown from aqueous solution by Sankaranarayanan‐Ramasamy (SR) method. A vertically designed L‐bend was used to avoid the effect due to spurious nucleation. A vertical bottom‐seeded ampoule was used for the growth of single crystal. A seed crystal was mounted at the bottom of the ampoule. Sulphamic acid crystals of up to 40 mm in diameter and 60 mm in length have been grown with a growth up to 10 mm per day. The grown sulphamic acid single crystal was characterized using X‐ray powder diffraction analysis, Raman, FTIR, and optical transmission studies. The dielectric behaviour was measured in the frequency range of 1 kHz–10 MHz for the temperature ranges from 30 °C to 170 °C. The sulphamic acid single crystal was also grown by conventional method. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Unidirectional growth of α‐NiSO4·6H2O crystal by Sankaranarayanan–Ramasamy (SR) method

Large cylindrical [001] direction α‐nickel sulphate hexahydrate crystal with 20 mm diameter and 140 mm length was grown from an aqueous solution by uniaxially solution‐crystallization method of Sankaranarayanan–Ramasamy (SR). The grown crystal was examined by X‐ray diffraction, UV‐Vis‐NIR spectroscopy and TGA/DTA analysis methods.     

Structural,thermal, mechanical and z‐scan studies on 4‐nitrophenol single crystals

4‐nitrophenol (4‐NP) single crystals have been grown by using slow evaporation and slow cooling techniques. A single crystal with size in the range of 7x3.4x1.8cm³ has been obtained by slow cooling method. The grown crystals have been subjected to various characterization studies. The powder XRD spectrum of 4‐NP reveals the good crystalline nature of the grown crystal. Single crystal XRD studies show that the crystal belongs to monoclinic system with cell parameters of a=6.09 Å, b=8.79 Å, c=11.61 Å, α=γ=90°, β=103.15°. The resultant FTIR spectrum confirms the various functional groups present in 4‐NP. Thermal analysis has been performed on the material to study the thermal stability of 4‐NP. The grown crystals belong to the category of soft materials as confirmed by Vickers Hardness tests. The optical transmiitance of 4‐NP single crystals has been measured from Vis‐IR spectroscopy study. The nonlinear optical properties have been analyzed by z‐scan technique and 4‐NP is found to be self defocusing because of its negative nonlinear refractive index. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Growth and thermal studies on pure ADP,KDP and mixed K1‐x(NH4)xH2PO4 crystals

The investigations on the formation of mixed crystals of ammonium dihydrogen orthophosphate (ADP) and potassium dihydrogen orthophosphate (KDP) i.e. potassium ammonium dihydrogen phosphate, K_1‐x(NH₄)_xH₂PO₄ have been presented in this paper. Pure and mixed crystals of ADP and KDP have been grown by slow evaporation technique from the supersaturated solution at an ambient temperature 26±1 °C for ammonium concentration x in the range 0.0 ≤ x ≤ 1.0 in the case of mixed crystals. Crystal compositions were determined by flame atomic absorption spectroscopy and chemical analysis. The results of the X‐ray analysis of the grown crystals are also reported. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) were used to study the kinetic process of dehydration and the high temperature phase behaviour. DTA showed the distinct thermal events attributed to dehydration of ADP, KDP and K_1‐x(NH₄)_xH₂PO₄. The results of thermal analysis and chemical analysis are consistent with each other. (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

XRD,thermal and FTIR studies on gel grown DL‐Phenylalanine crystals

Phenylalanine [C₉H₁₁NO₂] is one of the essential amino acids in humans. DL‐phenylalanine was crystallized in silica gel under suitable pH conditions by reduction of solubility method. The grown crystals were characterized by density measurement and X‐ray powder diffraction. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis were also carried out. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Growth of TGS crystals using uniaxially solution‐crystallization method of Sankaranarayanan‐Ramasamy

The recently discovered crystal growth method called uniaxially solution‐crystallization method of Sankaranarayanan–Ramasamy (SR) is modified in some aspects and used for growth of triglycine sulphate (TGS) crystals. The modification leads to the simplicity, reduction of cost and avoided the temperature fluctuations. The 〈010〉 direction of TGS is very important and used for fabrication of infrared detectors. Using this method, the 〈001〉, 〈010〉 directional crystals of TGS were successfully grown in a glass crystallizer. The grown crystal was characterized by HRXRD, UV‐Visible and dielectric studies. The results prove the suitability of the modified SR method for oriented TGS crystal. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Crystal structure and electrochemical property of one‐dimensional complex: [K(cis‐syn‐cis‐ dicyclohexyl‐18‐crown‐6)]2[Cu(mnt)2]

One metalorganic complex [K(cis‐syn‐cis‐ dicyclohexyl‐18‐crown‐6)]₂[Cu(mnt)₂] (mnt = maleonitriledithiolate) has been obtained by the reaction of dicyclohexyl‐18‐crown‐6 with K₂mnt and CuCl₂·2H₂O. The title complex has been characterized by elementary analysis, FT‐IR, UV‐Vis spectroscopy and x‐ray single crystal diffraction. The title complex crystallizes in the triclinic space group P1 with crystallographic data: a = 10.870(6) Å, b = 11.536(6) Å, c = 12.904(7) Å, α = 101.541(10)°, β = 110.573(9)°, γ = 99.441(9)°, V = 1435.2(13) ų, Z = 1, D_calcd = 1.350 g/cm³, F(000) = 615, R₁ = 0.0641, wR₂ = 0.1475. It displays one‐dimensional chain‐like structure formed by [K(cis‐syn‐cis‐ dicyclohexyl‐18‐crown‐6)]⁺ complex cations and [Cu(mnt)₂]^2‐ complex anions through N‐K‐N interactions. Its electrochemical behavior has also been studied by the cyclic voltammetry. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Growth and characterization of a new potential second harmonic generation material from the amino acid family: L‐Valinium picrate

L‐Valinium picrate (C₅H₁₂NO₂)⁺. (C₆H₂N₃O₇)^–, a non‐linear optical material from the amino acid family which has large second harmonic generation (SHG) efficiency, was grown by slow evaporation method. Characterization of the crystals was made using single crystal X‐ray diffraction. The functional groups and the modes of vibrations were found by using the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The second harmonic generation (SHG) conversion efficiency was investigated using the Kurtz and Perry method. The SHG conversion efficiency is 60 times higher than that of the standard KDP and 8 times higher than that of the standard Urea and the optical transparency was analyzed using UV‐visible‐NIR absorption spectrum. The structural features of the material leading to the large SHG efficiency are discussed. Microhardness and dielectric studies were also carried out. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Measurement of temperature and concentration dependences of refractive index of hen‐egg‐white lysozyme solution

This paper reports the measurement of temperature and concentration dependences of the refractive index of hen‐egg‐white lysozyme (HEWL) solution, and the temperature dependence of refractive index of the quartz container, which are indispensable for the efforts to measure HEWL concentration of the solution during the processes like crystal growth and dissolution using interferometer. As all of these dependences might be different under different observation wavelengths, temperatures and solution compositions, it is necessary to measure them for specific conditions. In this paper, the desired dependences were measured without knowing the actual value of the refractive index. The measurement method was introduced and the measurement experiments were undertaken at wavelength 780 nm. The dependences obtained will be also useful for those studies employing the same wavelength and solution conditions. (© 2003 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Effect of rhodium incorporation in KTiOPO4 single crystals grown from self‐flux

The presence of an impurity like rhodium in the platinum crucible used for the growth of KTiOPO₄ (KTP) single crystals can have severe consequences in the performance of devices made from these crystals. In the present study the effect of rhodium incorporation has been investigated. Rhodium‐incorporated KTP crystals have a lower ionic conductivity (1.3 × 10^–7 S/cm at 100 kHz) than pure KTP crystals (3.5 × 10^–6 S/cm at 100 kHz) along the c‐axis. And the optical absorption in the green‐wavelength regime leads to a detrimental effect on their SHG performance. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Optical and mechanical properties of a new second order nonlinear optical crystal urea l‐threonine

A new second order non‐linear optical organic crystal Urea L‐threonine has been grown by aqueous solution slow cooling technique. The grown crystal is non hygroscopic and transparent in the visible region. The solubility of the grown crystal was found. The crystal structure and perfection were determined using powder XRD and High resolution XRD. The molecular structure was confirmed by ¹H‐NMR spectrum. Thermal properties of the crystal have been studied using thermogravimetric (TG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). The dielectric response of the crystal with varying frequencies at different temperatures was studied. UV‐Visible spectrum was recorded to study the optical transparency of the grown crystals. The second order non linear optical property was examined by Kurtz powder technique and found that the second order susceptibilities is 1.2 KDP at wavelength 1064 nm. The mechanical behaviour was studied by Vickers Microhardness test. The results are discussed in detail. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Electroluminescence studies of chemically deposited (Zn‐Cd)S:Cu,F films

Electroluminescence (EL) emission has been observed under AC field excitation in chemically deposited (dipping technique) films of (Zn‐Cd)S:Cu,F using substrates of conducting glass plates. Results of XRD, SEM, absorption spectra, transmission spectra, EL emission spectra, voltage, frequency and temperature dependence and brightness waves of EL brightness are presented and discussed. SEM studies show better growth condition in presence of F. X‐ray diffraction studies show diffraction lines due to CdS and ZnS. Both the studies represent average particle sizes of the order of 1Å. Absorption studies show change in band gap due to increasing concentration of ZnS. The observed EL emission (blue‐green region) may be due to Cu, F combination. Results of transmission spectra give band gap similar to those given by absorption spectra. From voltage dependence of EL brightness acceleration‐collision mechanism is found to be effective. Frequency dependence of EL brightness shows first an increase in brightness in the lower frequency range followed by saturation at higher frequencies. Temperature dependence of EL emission shows a maximum at 40°C. Brightness waves consist of primary and secondary waves, which depend on voltage and frequency of excitation & the ambient temperature. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Influence of the atmosphere on the growth of LiYF4 single crystal fibers by the micro‐pulling‐down method

Micro‐pulling‐down growth of LiYF₄ single crystal fibers have been performed under different gas atmospheres using stoichiometric LiYF₄ single crystal pieces from prior Czochralski experiments as starting material. Completely transparent and phase pure LiYF₄ single crystal fibers could be obtained after evacuation of the recipient to 2×10^‐6 mbar and subsequent filling with pure (99.995%) CF₄ gas. Using a gas mixture of 5% CF₄ in Argon or pure 5N Argon leads to the formation of micro crystallites of oxofluorides on the surface. Evacuating only to 3 × 10^‐3 mbar leads, independently of atmosphere, to completely white fibers that are heavily contaminated with oxofluorides. DSC measurements of the completely transparent fiber grown under pure CF₄ atmosphere reveal congruent melting behavior. (© 2009 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Effect of annealing temperatures on properties of sol‐gel grown ZnO‐ZrO2 films

Mixed ZnO‐ZrO₂ films have been obtained by sol‐gel technology. By using spin coating method, the films were deposited on Si and glass substrates. The influence of thermal annealings (the temperatures vary from 400 °C to 750 °C) on their structural properties has been studied. The structural behavior has been investigated by the means of XRD and FTIR techniques. The results revealed no presence of mixed oxide phases, the detected crystal phases were related to the hexagonal ZnO and to crystalline ZrO₂. The sol‐gel ZnO‐ZrO₂ films showed polycrystalline structure with a certain degree of an amorphous fraction. The optical transmittance reached 91% and it diminished with increasing the annealing temperatures. The optical properties of the sol‐gel ZnO‐ZrO₂ films, deposited on glass substrates are excellent with high transparency and better then those of pure ZrO₂ films, obtained at similar technological conditions. (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Crystal growth,morphology, spectrographic characterization and thermal properties of 4,5‐bis(benzoylthio)‐1,3‐dithiole‐2‐thione

Single crystals of 4,5‐bis(benzoylthio)‐1,3‐dithiole‐2‐thione (BBDT), were grown from methylene chloride and the growth morphology was deduced by the Bravais–Friedel Donnay–Harker (BFDH) model. The grown crystals were characterized by optical absorption, infrared, Raman and X‐ray powder diffraction spectroscopy. The thermal behavior of BBDT has been investigated by means of thermogravimetric analysis and differential thermal analysis measurements in air. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Synthesis and characterization of phosphates in the pseudo‐ternary melted systems Cs2O‐P2O5‐MIIO (MII – alkaline earth)

The crystallization of alkali‐earth phosphates in the melts of Cs₂O‐P₂O₅‐M^IIO (M^II – Ca, Sr, Ba) pseudo‐ternary systems have been investigated at various Cs/P molar ratios and at fixed value of M^II/P equal to 0.15. Type of the phosphate which crystallizes in melts depends on the Cs/P initial ratio. Crystallization fields of CsM^IIP₃O₉, M^II₂P₂O₇ and Cs₂M^IIP₂O₇ were briefly investigated and characterized. The new diphosphate Cs₂CaP₂O₇ has been obtained and investigated by the single crystal and powder X‐ray diffraction and FTIR‐ spectroscopy. It crystallizes in C 2/m space group, with the following parameters of the monoclinic cell: a = 10.261(2), b = 5.9316(12), c = 7.2404(14) Å, β = 118.54(3)°. The architecture of [CaP₂O₇]^2‐ anionic sublattice, which is built up from [CaO₆] octahedra and [P₂O₇] bitetrahedra, interlinked via the common oxygen vertices, gives rise to formation of hexagonal tunnels along crystallographic direction b, where caesium atoms are located. One of the most remarkable features of the structure is specific positional disorder of the diphosphate group, which is connected with the existence of two equiprobable half‐occupied sites of the bridging oxygen. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Synthesis,spectroscopic studies and ab‐initio structure determination from X‐ray powder diffraction of bis‐(N‐3‐acetophenylsalicylaldiminato)copper(II)

The synthesis, spectroscopic studies and crystal structure determination from X‐ray powder diffraction have been carried out for bis‐(N‐3‐acetophenylsalicylaldiminato)copper(II). The structure is triclinic, space group P1 with unit cell dimensions a = 11.817(1) Å, b = 12.087(1) Å, c = 9.210(1) Å, α = 102.62(1)°, β = 111.16(1)°, γ = 86.15(1)°, V = 1197.0(2)ų, Z = 2. The structure has been solved by Monte Carlo simulated annealing approach and refined by GSAS package. The final Rp value was 8.68%. The coordination geometry around the copper atom in the complex is intermediate between square‐planar and tetrahedral with two salicylaldimine ligands in trans arrangement. Intermolecular C–H…O hydrogen bonds between molecules related by translation generate infinite chains along [010] direction. The molecular chains are linked via additional C–H…O hydrogen bonds to form a three‐dimensional supramolecular network. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)