Growth, spectroscopic and physicochemical properties of bis mercury ferric chloride tetra thiocyanate: a nonlinear optical crystal.

Single crystal of bis mercury ferric chloride tetra thiocyanate [Hg2FeCl3(SCN)4; (MFCTC)] was grown from ethanol-water (3:1) mixed solvent using slow evaporation solvent technique (SEST) for the first time. The cell parameters of the grown crystal were confirmed by single crystal XRD. The coordination of transition metal ions with the SCN ligand is well-identified using FT-IR spectral analysis. The chemical composition of MFCTC was confirmed using CHNS elemental test. The ESR spectral profile of MFCTC was recorded from 298 K to 110K, which strongly suggests the incorporation of Fe(3+) ion and its environment with respect to SCN ligand. The HPLC chromatogram of MFCTC highlights the purity of the compound. The UV-Vis-NIR studies revealed the ultra violet cut-off wavelength of MFCTC in ethanol as 338 nm. The dielectric constant and dielectric loss of the sample were studied as a function of frequency and temperature. The TGA-DTA and DSC thermal analysis show that the sample is thermally stable up to 234.31 °C, which is comparatively far better than the thermal stability of Hg3CdCl2(SCN)6; (171.3 °C) and other metal-organic coordination complex crystals such as CdHg(SCN)4 (198.5 °C), Hg(N2H4CS)4Mn(SCN)4 (199.06 °C) and Hg(N2H4CS)4Zn(SCN)4 (185 °C). The SHG conversion efficiency of MFCTC is found to be higher than KDP.