Pisolithus Arhizus dye: A novel natural dopant for tailoring nonlinear optical properties of guanidinium carbonate single crystals

Abstract

In the realm of crystal growth, the utilization of dopant materials plays a pivotal role in tailoring the properties of single crystals. This research explores the incorporation of natural dyes, specifically the pigment derived from the Pisolithus Arhizus fungus extract, as a dopant material in the growth process of Guanidinium Carbonate (GC) single crystals. Comparative analyses were carried out between the dye-doped crystals and their undoped counterparts, revealing significant enhancements in the growth period, optical properties, mechanical properties, thermal properties and second harmonic generation (SHG) efficiency of the dye-doped crystals. Structural characterizations, including single crystal and powder X-ray diffraction techniques, confirmed the crystalline nature of both undoped and dye-doped crystals. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) analysis validated the existence of functional groups, while Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis (EDAX) confirmed the presence of dye molecules within the crystal lattice. UV–Visible spectroscopy and microhardness studies revealed enhanced optical and mechanical characteristics in dye-doped crystals compared to undoped ones. Thermogravimetric and Differential Thermal analysis (TG-DTA) indicate improved thermal stability in dye-doped crystals. The non-linear optical characterization showed 1.73 times increase in SHG efficiency in dye-doped crystals compared to undoped GC crystals. Therefore, including dye molecules in the crystal lattice improved the optical, thermal, mechanical properties and SHG efficiency, making dye-doped crystals suitable candidates for various optical applications.