Growth and characterization of strontium tartrate tetrahydrate and zinc doped strontium tartrate tetrahydrate crystal

Crystals of strontium tartrate tetrahydrate (STT) and Zinc (Zn2+) doped strontium tartrate tetrahydrate (ZSTT) are grown using the silica gel technique. Crystals are characterized using Powder X-Ray Diffraction (PXRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). PXRD results suggest that both STT and ZSTT crystals have an orthorhombic structure with space group P2(1)2(1)2(1) containing 4 molecules per unit cell. In FTIR spectrograph major vibrational peaks of OH, CH, C=O are observed in STT and ZSTT crystals. Thermogravimetry (TGA) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) studies confirm the thermal stability of as-grown crystals. The transmission spectra of STT and ZSTT crystals are recorded in the wavelength range of 190-1100 nm and are used to estimate the band gap. The doping of Zn2+ ions decrease the energy band gap from 5.64 eV to 5.50 eV. At room temperature, the frequency-dependent dielectric measurement of as grown crystals are studied.