Second-harmonic generation studies of chiral organic salts

Second-harmonic generation in the solid state is restricted to materials that crystallize in non-centrosymmetric space groups. Unfortunately, the vast majority of solids crystallize in centrosymmetric space groups and are therefore SHG-inactive. The requirement for solid-state asymmetry is addressed in a new series of organic salts. The acid p-nitrophenylglycine, SHG-inactive due to its centrosymmetric (P1) packing, was coupled to six optically pure amines to form salts and (or) complexes that, by virtue of their chiral counterion, crystallized in non-centrosymmetric space groups. The 1064 nm output from a Nd:YAG laser produced 532 nm second-harmonic generation from each of the six salts, with, three of the salts producing second-harmonic intensities at least an order of magnitude greater than that of our standard, urea. X-ray crystallographic analysis was carried out on five of the six salts, and an attempt was made to rationalize the second-harmonic intensity of each of these five salts based on the orientation of its molecular charge-transfer axis in the unit cell and on its chromophore density.