Synthesis,growth and studies of undoped and sodium chloride-doped Zinc Tris-thiourea Sulphate (ZTS) single crystals

Single crystals of undoped (pure) and sodium chloride (NaCl)-doped Zinc Tris-thiourea Sulphate (ZTS) were grown from aqueous solutions by slow evaporation technique. Morphological alterations have been observed when NaCl is doped into ZTS crystals. Density of the grown crystals was measured by floatation method. The values of unit cell parameters from single crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies show that pure and sodium chloride-doped ZTS crystals are in orthorhombic structure. Impurity concentration in the doped crystals was estimated by using an atomic absorption spectrometer. Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) test for the undoped and NaCl-doped ZTS crystals was performed by the powder technique of Kurtz and Perry using a pulsed Nd:YAG laser. Microhardness studies show that hardness number (H_v) increases with load for all the grown crystals of this work. From the values of work hardening coefficients, it is concluded that pure and sodium chloride-doped ZTS crystals belong to the category of soft materials. UV–vis–NIR spectra show that the grown crystals have wide optical transparency in the entire visible region. Birefringence studies of the grown samples have been performed by channelled spectrum method. The thermal stability of the materials is found to be increasing with the doping concentration of sodium chloride (NaCl) in the lattice of ZTS crystals.     

Synthesis,characterization and photoluminescence of ZnO:Cd rosette-like nanostructures using solution process

Well crystalline undoped and Cd-doped ZnO rosette-like structures were successfully synthesized at low temperature (80 °C) via solution process technique during 30 min. Zinc nitrate, cadmium nitrate, sodium hydroxide and hexamine were used as starting materials. The morphology and microstructure were determined by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. X-ray diffraction indicated that the structure has a single phase with wurtzite structure. FESEM indicated that rosette like structures have been formed. This rosette consists of nanorods with length 210 and 460 nm and diameter 50 and 74 nm for undoped and Cd doped ZnO, respectively. HRTEM showed a decrease in the lattice parameter after the Cd doping. EDX showed that the amount of Cd incorporated into ZnO is 6.4 wt.%. Photoluminescence measurements taken on both doped and undoped samples showed that, in the Cd-doped ZnO nanostructures, the band-edge UV emission is blue shifted and the broad green emission intensity decreased.     

Optical absorption edge in doped and undoped ZnSe crystals

The optical absorption near the fundamental edge has been investigated for different types of doped and undoped cubic ZnSe crystals. Crystals grown from the vapour phase, with and without doping, and crystals grown by the chemical transport technique are compared.Results of absorption coefficient measurements made from 77 to 313 LK are discussed and it is shown that for undoped samples, the absorption tail is dominated by electrons-phonons interactions and Urbach's rule is nearly verified, whereas for doped samples the influence of defects is preponderant.     

Melt growth of highly pure CdBr2 crystals and study of their polytypism

Very high purity single crystals have been successfully grown by the method of vertical zone refining. The problem of excessive evaporation of the material, confronted by the earlier workers, has been successfully overcome. The purity of the crystals has been tested by D. C. conductivity measurements and further confirmed by U. V. spectroscopy. X-ray diffraction has been employed for the characterization of the crystals. The crystals have been found to crystallize exclusively in 6R polytypic modifications, without any arcing and streaking on their X-ray photographs. The results have been discussed in relation to the effect of impurities on polytype formation.     

Fe doping induced enhancement in room temperature ferromagnetism and selective cytotoxicity of CeO2 nanoparticles

In the present study, structural, optical, magnetic properties as well as cytotoxicity of undoped and Fe doped Ceria (CeO₂) nanoparticles synthesized by simple soft chemical method have been reported. SEM and XRD results have shown that the synthesized samples are comprised of ultrafine spherical nanoparticles having single phase cubic fluorite structure of CeO₂. Raman spectroscopy results have depicted a red shift in F_2g mode with Fe doping which reveals enhancement in the oxygen vacancies. The optical band gap calculated from UV–visible absorption spectra has been found to vary unsystematically with Fe doping which is associated with the creation of impurity level and abundance in oxygen vacancies with Fe doping. The oxygen vacancies have introduced the room temperature ferromagnetism (RTFM) in undoped and Fe doped CeO₂ nanoparticles. The saturation magnetization (M_s) value of pristine CeO₂ nanoparticles has been found to be 0.00083 emu/g which is increased up to 0.0126 emu/g for 7% Fe doped nanoparticles. For cytotoxicity tests, the synthesized nanoparticles induced effects on Neuroblastoma cancer cells & HEK-293 healthy cells have been analyzed via CCK-8 analysis. It has been observed that the prepared undoped and Fe doped CeO₂ nanoparticles have nontoxic nature towards healthy cells while they are extremely toxic towards cancerous cells. Furthermore, the anticancer activity is found to enhance with Fe doping. The selective toxicity and enhancement in anticancer activity with Fe doping has observed to be strongly correlated with reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation.     

Structural, optical and electrical properties of molybdenum-doped cadmium oxide thin films prepared by spray pyrolysis method

Molybdenum-doped cadmium oxide films were prepared by a spray pyrolysis technique at a substrate temperature of 300?°C. The effect of doping on structural, electrical and optical properties were studied. X-ray analysis shows that the undoped CdO films are preferentially oriented along the (111) crystallographic direction. Molybdenum doping concentration increases the films?? packing density and reorients the crystallites along the (200) plane. A?minimum resistivity of 4.68×10^?4????cm with a maximum mobility of 75?cm²?V^?1?s^?1 is achieved when the CdO film is doped with 0.5?wt.% Mo. The band-gap value is found to increase with doping and reaches a maximum of 2.56?eV for 0.75?wt.% as compared to undoped films of 2.2?eV.     

Phase transformations in PbI2 crystals with temperature

A systematic study of phase transformation with temperature has been undertaken in single crystals of lead iodide grown in gel. The crystals of the polytype 2H, which is known to be the common modification of PbI₂ at room temperature, have been finally found to transform into polytype 12R after heating at 150°C. During the intermediate period of heating the crystals show features of disorder, viz. streaking or arcing or both, on their X-ray diffraction photographs. The higher polytypes 12H and 16H do not show any change even after prolonged heating at 150°C. If silver iodide is added in a minute quantity during crystallization, the process of phase transformation is appreciably altered. The results have been discussed.     

The effect of MgO doping on optical properties of LiNbO3 single crystals

Undoped and MgO doped Lithium niobate single crystals were grown by the Czochralski technique. Comparative study of the optical properties of undoped and 7 mol% MgO doped LiNbO₃ crystal was undertaken. The effect of doping on refractive indices as well as second harmonic generation has been experimentally analyzed. The results of the polarization characteristics of second harmonic generation (SHG) support the major contribution of Li-O bonds to optical nonlinearity. MgO doping reduces the number of localized excitons and the grown LiNbO₃ crystal approaches the stoichiometric composition. This causes blue shift in the absorption edge of the crystals.     

Convergent-beam electron diffraction analysis of GaSe crystals grown from the melt by different doping elements

Summary A systematic investigation of the structural modifications of GaSe crystals, grown from the melt by different doping elements, has been performed by convergent-beam electron diffraction technique, in order to analyse the dependence of the structure on the doping atoms. Iodine-doped crystals have shown the ɛ-2H hexagonal and γ-3R rhombohedral polytypes. The structure of crystals doped either by silver, or copper, or cadmium, or zinc, or arsenic has been proved a mixture of the ɛ-2H hexagonal and of γ, 9 R, 12 R, 15 R rhombohedral phases. Ingots doped either by zinc or arsenic have shown the ɛ polytype prevailing in some zones and the γ structure in the other ones. The ɛ modification is dominant in ingots doped by the remaining atoms.     

Growth, structural, spectral, mechanical and dielectric characterization of RbCl-doped l-alanine hydrogen chloride monohydrate single crystals

Pure (undoped) and RbCl-doped LAHC single crystals were grown successfully by the solution method with the slow evaporation technique at room temperature. The grown crystals were colourless and transparent. The solubility of the grown samples were found out at various temperatures. The lattice parameters of the grown crystals were determined by the single crystal X-ray diffraction technique and the diffracting planes were indentified by recording the powder X-ray diffraction pattern. UV-visible transmittance studies were carried out for the grown samples. Chemical analysis and atomic absorption studies indicate the presence of rubidium in the doped LAHC crystals. Nonlinear optical studies reveal that the SHG efficiency increases when the LAHC crystal is doped with rubidium chloride (RbCl). From microhardness studies, it is observed that the RbCl-doped LAHC crystal is harder than the pure sample. It is observed that the dielectric properties of the LAHC crystal are altered when it is doped with rubidium chloride.     

Band gap variation in laser irradiated polytypic crystals of cadmium iodide

Highly purified single crystals of cadmium iodide obtained through repeated zone refining have been subjected to laser beam exposure (Argon ion laser), both for various time durations and to various beam intensities, and then subjected to band gap determination by UV spectroscopy. The band gap has been found to decrease gradually with increase in the laser beam intensity, whereas its variation with increase in time of exposure shows an unusual behaviour such that it initially falls sharply followed by a gradual rise back to its original value. The results have been analysed and interpreted in terms of indirect band gap character of the material and an unusual variation in phonon frequency. The interpretation is well supported by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies. Received: 26 May 1997 / Revised: 6 August 1997 / Accepted: 15 September 1997     

Photoelectric properties of pure and aluminium doped CdS films

Photoelectric properties of pure and Al doped vacuum deposited CdS films have been studied to explore the possibility of their application in photoactivated liquid crystal light valves. The effect of heat treatment in oxygen atmosphere, rate of deposition and the extent of Al doping, etc. on the resistivity, photo-response spectral characteristics, rise and decay time of photo-current, etc. have been investigated. It has been found that in contrast to pure CdS films, the properties of Al-doped films significantly depend on both the rate of deposition and the extent of Al doping. The dark resistivity in all cases was found to increase with heat treatment in oxygen. Unlike pure CdS films, Al doped films show photo-conductivity which is enhanced by heat treatment. Al doped films deposited at higher rates show better photo response even at lower light levels. At various light levels the rise and decay time of Al-doped films were found to be fairly constant and lower than that for pure CdS films. All these properties have been explained in terms of the presence of trapping levels due to doping. These trapping levels are also indicated by TSC, optical absorption and EPR studies.     

Micro‐Raman scattering spectroscopy study of Li‐doped and undoped ZnO needle crystals

ZnO nanostructures have attracted great attention for possible applications in optoelectronic and spintronic devices. The electrical resistivity because of carriers can be improved by the introduction of Li ions, as Li is a possible dopant for achieving p‐type ZnO. We have carried out a comprehensive micro‐Raman scattering study of the phonons in 1% Li‐ and undoped ZnO needle crystals grown and annealed at 1073 K for 1 and 2 h under oxygen environment. Phonon mode of doped and undoped ZnO does not show any measurable shift for the doping concentration of 1%. As line width is related to point defect density, we find for both Li‐ and undoped ZnO crystals the crystallinity is improving towards the tip of the needle crystals. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cathodoluminescence from deformed doped MgO crystals

The cathodoluminescence (CL) from indented Fe doped MgO single crystals has been studied with the scanning electron microscope and the results have been compared with the CL from undoped crystals. As in the undoped crystals, the iron doped crystals show in the deformed regions an enhanced luminescence emission but it has been found that iron acts as a quencher of luminescence. The results indicate that in the blue emission of the deformed crystals there is not a noticeable contribution of iron. From the evolution of CL with the irradiation time in the electron microscope it is concluded that the total Fe content influences the CL emission more than the Fe³⁺ content.     

Linear and nonlinear absorption,SHG and photobleaching behaviors of Dy doped GaSe single crystal

The linear absorption, nonlinear absorption (NA), second harmonic generation (SHG) and carrier mobilities of undoped and 0.1 at% Dy doped GaSe single crystals grown by modified Bridgman method have been studied by UV–vis, open aperture Z-scan, SHG and transmission ultrafast pump probe spectroscopy experiments. Both linear absorption and SHG measurements clearly showed that the doping of GaSe crystal with Dy³⁺ leads to a shift in the linear absorption edge. The mechanisms contributing to the NA behavior were explained and discussed. The photobleaching behaviors of the crystals were investigated by delaying of the probe signal in transmission pump-probe spectroscopy experiments.     

Influence of PbF2 and MoO3 on properties of PbWO4 crystals

The influence of doping (with F, Gd and Mo ions) and co-doping (with F, Gd or F, Gd, Mo ions) of PbWO₄ crystals was investigated. It is shown that even a small amount of specific impurities (especially F ions) causes an important redistribution of the point defects and changes the physical properties of the crystals. The cell parameters were refined from X-ray powder diffraction data. It was found that the cell parameters of F-doped PbWO₄ samples are larger than those of undoped samples. Photoluminescence and optical transmission spectra of pure and doped PbWO₄ were investigated.     

Growth and characterization of pure and doped organic nonlinear optical single crystal: l-Alanine alaninium nitrate (LAAN)

The pure l-alanine alaninium nitrate (LAAN) single crystals and LAAN crystals doped with lanthanum oxide (La₂O₃), sodium chloride (NaCl), urea (CH₄N₂O), glycine (C₂H₅NO₂) and thiourea (CH₄N₂S) were grown by slow evaporation method. The X-ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDAX) analysis, UV–vis spectral analysis, dielectric studies and powder SHG measurement are studied systematically. The slight changes in the lattice parameters were observed for the doped crystals compared to pure LAAN crystal. The incorporation of doping into the crystal lattice was confirmed by energy dispersive X-ray analysis. There is no change in the transmission window due to doping and the percentage of transmission in doped samples was found to increase as compared to that of pure LAAN crystal. The dielectric constant of pure crystal was found to be less than that of doped crystals. The AC conductivity was found to increase after doping and with the increase in temperature. A green radiation of 532 nm was observed from the pure and doped LAAN crystals confirming the second harmonic generation (SHG) of the crystals.     

Crystalline structure and morphological properties of undoped and Sn doped ZnO thin films

Undoped and tin (Sn) doped ZnO thin films have been prepared by spray pyrolysis method. Effect of Sn dopant on the crystalline structure and morphological properties of ZnO thin films has been investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) method. XRD patterns confirm that the films have polycrystalline nature. While undoped ZnO film has (101) as the preferred orientation, Sn doped ZnO thin films have (002) as the preferred orientation. Grain sizes, lattice parameters and texture coefficient values of the films were determined. Microstructure was analyzed by SEM and the influence of the doping concentration in the microstructure of the films is investigated.     

Effect of urea and thiourea on nonlinear optical hippuric acid crystals

Pure, urea and thiourea doped hippuric acid (HA) single crystals have been grown in acetone using slow evaporation technique at a constant temperature, with the vision to improve the properties of the crystals. The crystal systems and the unit cell parameters of the grown crystals were identified from single crystal X-ray diffraction. The crystalline nature of the grown crystals was confirmed by powder X-ray diffraction and the diffraction peaks were indexed. The variations in composition due to the addition of dopants were identified by CHNS analysis. FT-IR studies reveal the presence of different vibrational bands. The optical characteristics were assessed by UV–vis analysis and it indicates the transmission in the visible region. TGA and DSC studies indicate the thermal behavior of pure and doped crystals. The Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) has been tested using Kurtz Powder Technique for the pure and doped crystals. It is found that the thiourea doped hippuric acid crystals have SHG efficiency of 2.08 times higher than that of potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) single crystal. The dielectric studies were carried out, and the variations of dielectric constant and dielectric loss with temperature have been studied.