Polarization and wavelength dependent nonlinear optical properties of a photo-switchable organic crystal

Michel Sliwa (1, 2) , Keitaro Nakatani (1, 2) , Tsuyoshi Asahi (3) , Pascal G. Lacroix (4) , Robert Bernard Pansu (1, 2) , Hiroshi Masuhara (3)

1 PPSM - Laboratoire de Photophysique et Photochimie Supramoléculaires et Macromoléculaires
2 IDA - Institut d'Alembert
3 Department of Applied Physics
4 LCC - Laboratoire de chimie de coordination

Polarization dependence of the second harmonic generation (SHG) was studied on a single crystal of the photochromic N-(3,5-di-tertbutylsalicylidene)-4-aminopyridine (4P). The optimal polarization condition for SHG is obtained when both the fundamental and second harmonic waves are parallel to the main axis of the crystal. This experimental result was correlated with calculations based on X-ray diffraction structure. Also, wavelength dependent studies showed that SHG-switching on near-UV irradiation could be tuned by utilizing the absorption and resonance effects of the photo-induced species.

Mots clés: 2nd-harmonic generation; Photochromism; Molecules

Domaines: Chimie théorique et/ou physique; Matériaux

Michel Sliwa, Keitaro Nakatani, Tsuyoshi Asahi, Pascal G. Lacroix, Robert Bernard Pansu, et al.. Polarization and wavelength dependent nonlinear optical properties of a photo-switchable organic crystal. Chemical Physics Letters, 2007, 437 (4-6), pp.212-217. ⟨10.1016/j.cplett.2007.02.001⟩. ⟨hal-00169061⟩