Third‐Order Nonlinear Optical Studies of (2E)‐2‐(3,4‐Dimethoxybenzylidene)‐3,4‐Dihydronaphthalen‐1(2H)‐One Chalcone Derivative using Z‐Scan Technique and DFT Method
Single crystals of the organic nonlinear compound, (2E)‐2‐(3,4‐Dimethoxybenzylidene)‐3,4‐dihydronaphthalen‐1(2H)‐one, is synthesized and grown through slow evaporation solution approach. The crystalline structure of the grown crystals is confirmed by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction measurement. The fourier transform infrared (FT‐IR)and Raman (FT‐Raman) studies, along with potential energy distribution analysis, confirmed the vibrational contribution to each normal mode in the molecule. Thermal studies suggest that the chalcone molecule is thermally stable up to 187°C. The bomb calorimeter yields a calorific value of 32405 J g−1, higher than that of ethanol (28895 J g−1), with a relative difference of 10.83%. The material's photoluminescence (PL) spectrum illustrates emission peaks in the green region, indicating that the molecule is suitable for manufacturing green LEDs. The combined theoretical and experimental ultraviolet‐visible (UV–vis) absorption spectrum demonstrated an excellent transparency area and a small optical bandgap, emphasizing the material's potential use in window optical applications. The Z‐scan technique analysis with a continuous‐wave laser revealed significant self‐defocusing and reverse saturable absorbance effects for closed and open apertures, respectively. The optical limiting threshold value of the compound is found to be 3.18 KJ cm−2, and the computational nonlinear optical studies predict that the title compound has superior nonlinear characteristics compared to urea, thereby suggesting that the synthesized molecule is a promising candidate for nonlinear optical applications.
