Structural, optical, morphological and SHG studies on 8 MeV electron beam irradiated Sr(HCOO)₂·2H₂O crystal

Strontium formate dihydrate single crystals have been grown by the slow solvent evaporation method and subjected to 8 MeV electron beam (EB) irradiation at different doses, viz. 1 kGy, 10 kGy, 50 kGy and 100 kGy. The irradiated crystals have been studied by various techniques such as FT-IR, Raman, and UV-Vis-NIR spectral analyses, powder, and high resolution X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis (TG/DTA) and second harmonic generation (SHG) measurements. The morphological features of the non-irradiated and irradiated crystals were analyzed by SEM and optical microscopy studies. It has been noticed that the SHG efficiency increases while the crystalline perfection and thermal stability of the irradiated crystals decrease with the increase of EB irradiation dose. The results indicate a significant overall tuning of physical properties of strontium formate dihydrate crystals due to irradiation.