LAP SINGLE-CRYSTAL GROWTH FREE OF MICROORGANISMS BY AN ACCURATELY CONTROLLED SOLVENT EVAPORATION TECHNIQUE

We report the growth of LAP single crystals in solution prepared with a suitable chemical doping, namely sodium azide, NaN3, that ensured th e absence of any microorganisms colonies for a long time (up to six mo nths) with no solution maintenance. The crystals were grown with the i sothermal solvent evaporation method, using an accurately controlled s olvent evaporation technique (ACSET). Good crystals, highly transparen t and with well-defined morphology were obtained and no significant ch ange in the macroscopic kinects of crystal growth was verified. The me asurements of optical properties such as optical absorption, refractiv e index and second harmonic generation of the LAP crystals grown using sodium azide do not present any detectable change when compared to re sults reported in the literature.