Piezoelectric Coefficients of mNA Organic Nonlinear Optical Material Using Synchrotron X-Ray Multiple Diffraction

L. H. Avanci; L. P. Cardoso; S. E. Girdwood; D. Pugh; J. N. Sherwood; K. J. Roberts

doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.81.5426

Piezoelectric Coefficients of mNA Organic Nonlinear Optical Material Using Synchrotron X-Ray Multiple Diffraction

L. H. Avanci, L. P. Cardoso, S. E. Girdwood, D. Pugh, J. N. Sherwood, and K. J. Roberts

Phys. Rev. Lett. 81, 5426 – Published 14 December 1998

Abstract

Distortions produced in the unit cell of a nonlinear organic crystal under the influence of an applied electric field $E$ are investigated by using synchrotron x-ray multiple diffraction (MD). A typical MD pattern shows numerous $(hkl)$ secondary peaks and the position of each one is basically a function of the unit cell lattice parameters. Thus small changes in any parameter due to a strain produced by $E$ give rise to a corresponding variation in the $(hkl)$ peak position. The method was applied to the meta-nitroaniline (mNA) crystal and we were able to determine three piezoelectric coefficients.

Received 13 July 1998

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.81.5426

Authors & Affiliations

L. H. Avanci^1,2,*, L. P. Cardoso¹, S. E. Girdwood³, D. Pugh², J. N. Sherwood², and K. J. Roberts³

¹Instituto de Física “Gleb Wataghin,” Universidade Estadual de Campinas, CP 6165, 13083-970, Campinas-SP, Brazil
²Pure and Applied Chemistry Department, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XL, United Kingdom
³Centre for Molecular and Interface Engineering, D.M.C. Engineering, Heriot-Watt University, Riccarton, Edinburgh EH14 4AS, United Kingdom