We report the development of a new nonlinear optical crystal CsTiOAsO4
(CTA). The relatively large cesium ion leads to a structural instabil
ity in the orthorhombic structure, which significantly affects its cry
stal growth properties. Modification of the crystal growth process, ho
wever, allows the growth of large inclusion-free single crystals measu
ring up to 30 X 20 X 25 mm3. The refractive indices, nonlinear optical
coefficients, electro-optic coefficients, and dielectric properties o
f these crystals were measured using standard techniques. Compared to
KTiOPO4, CTA has a smaller birefringence which makes it particularly s
uitable for frequency doubling Nd:YAG lasers operating near 1.32 mum.
We also report the ferroelectric poling of multidomain CTA crystals an
d discuss possible extension of this poling process to other KTP isomo
rphs.