Growth and characterization of a new chalcone derivative: (E)-3-(4-Hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1-(4-hydroxyphenyl)prop-2-en-1-one (HMHP)

Single crystals of (HMHP), an organic nonlinear optical (NLO) material were synthesized successfully by slow evaporation method using absolute alcohol as the solvent. The product was recrystallized to ensure the purity of the grown crystal. The grown crystal has been subjected to single-crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) procedure to elucidate the cell parameters hence the structure of the compound. NMR, FT-IR, UV–Vis–NIR and Photoluminescence (PL) spectra of the grown crystal were obtained to confirm the structure, functional groups, absorption and transmittance abilities, respectively. The thermal behavior of the crystal was determined from TGA/DTA curve. The mechanical property of the grown crystal was studied by subjecting it to the Vickers micro hardness tester. The second harmonic generation (SHG) efficiency of the grown crystal was studied using Nd: YAG laser with a pulse width of 8 ns and wavelength of 1064 nm. © 2016, The Optical Society of India.