Growth and characterization of piezoelectric benzil single crystals and its application in microstrip patch antenna

Abstract

Organic non-linear optical single crystals of benzil have been grown by Czochralski (Cz) and slow-evaporation techniques. The crystal morphology was characterized by computing the growth rates of the planes, which were found to be affected by solvent modification. Intermolecular interactions of the benzil crystal were explored by Hirshfeld surface and 2D fingerplot in a novel visual manner. A linear optical study was carried out by UV-vis transmission spectroscopy, in which the Cz grown crystal was found to be more transparent with a cut-off wavelength at 406 nm. Photoluminescence emission was observed in the green region with higher intensity in Cz grown crystal. The piezoelectric charge coefficients were found to be 4, 1, 6 and 3 pC N⁻¹ along (100), (010), (001) and (10) planes of the solution grown crystal. The study of Vicker's microhardness and volume of voids in the grown crystals confirmed that the Cz grown crystal has better mechanical strength. Patch antenna based on the substrate of Cz grown benzil crystal was simulated for resonant frequency at 12.6 GHz and fabricated, and is suitable for piezoelectric, sensor and telecommunication applications.