Abstract

L-arginine phosphate (LAP) a new organic nonlinear optical material. It has both a higher conversion efficiency and a higher damage threshold than does D*KDP. We report the first study of the correlation of lattice defects and the changes in birefringency brought about by them in LAP. In all the crystals grown by low-temperature solution crystal growth technique, a central region near the seed crystal with high dislocation density (~10⁶/cm²) is observed. This region is correlated with noticeable birefringency changes by means of a birefringency interferometer.¹ Its influence on the damage threshold for high-power lasers will be discussed. Also, a possible origin of the region will be discussed, from the crystal growth point of view, along with remedies to reduce it or avoid its formation in order to ensure better optical quality crystals.

© 1990 Optical Society of America