SEM, Chemical Etching and THz Wave Generation of 4-Dimethylamino-N-methyl-4-stilbazolium Tosylate (DAST) Single Crystals

Abstract

The 4-dimethylamino-N-methyl-4-stilbazolium tosylate (DAST) crystal which was candidate for generating and detecting terahertz (THz) wave was grown by slope nucleation method (SNM). The functional groups of DAST were identified by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) studies. Macroscopic steps and streaks on the (001) face were found by scanning electron microscope (SEM). Different patterns of etch pits under different chemical etchants were studied by optical microscope. Widely tunable THz waves ranging from 0.38 to 18.10 THz were generated from 0.5 mm-thick DAST crystal. The maximum output energy was 345.4 nJ/pulse at 3.39 THz and the conversion efficiency was 8.44 × 10^–5.