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Synthesis, Structural, Optical, Hirshfeld Analysis and Nonlinear Optical Activity of L-Alanine L-Alaninium Picrate Monohydrate for Photonics Applications
P. Vasudevan, A. Vichithra, G. Saravana Kumar and D. Jayaraman
Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins that have gained attention for their intriguing optical properties. L-alanine is a water-soluble amino acid that can react with other organic acids to form new nonlinear optical materials. In the present study, the L-alanine L-alaninium picrate monohydrate [LALAPM] compound has been synthesized using the slow evaporation technique at room temperature. The lattice parameters and space group were determined using a single crystal XRD diffractometer and confirmed by a powder X-ray diffractometer. The presence of functional groups was confirmed with the help of an FTIR spectrometer. The optical absorption of the crystal was analyzed using a UV-VIS-NIR spectrophotometer, revealing an energy band gap of 2.56 eV. A photoluminescence study was carried out to analyze the excited state of the electron structure, the emission behaviour of photons, and the energy gap of the material. Hirshfeld analysis and 2D fingerprint plots were used to visualize closer molecular contacts, highlighting the overall percentage of interactions. The second harmonic generation efficiency was evaluated as 1.5 times higher than that of KDP using the Kurtz and Perry powder technique. The materials like β-Barium Borate, Lithium Niobate and KDP possess enhanced SHG efficiency comparable with that of LALAPM. The enhanced nonlinear optical property is due to the presence of strong hydrogen bonding and charge transfer interactions. The presence of picrate ions causes good optical transparency in the visible and near-infrared regions. Additionally, noncentrosymmetric structure and strong hydrogen bond networks all contribute to the development of potential nonlinear optical materials for high-speed information processing, optical communications, and optical data storage devices.
Keywords: Single crystal XRD, FTIR study, Photoluminescence, Hirshfeld surface analysis, Non-linear optical study