Experimental determination of metastable zonewidth, induction period, interfacial energy and growth of non-linear optical l-HFB single crystals

Metastable zonewidth, induction period and interfacial energy have been determined for the aqueous solution growth of l-histidine tetrafluoroborate (l-HFB). Nucleation parameters such as radius of critical nucleus, Gibbs free energy change have also been investigated. The solubility of l-HFB has been estimated at different temperatures. Interfacial energy has been estimated using the experimentally determined induction period values. The evaluated interfacial tension values are found to be comparable with the theoretical values derived from solubility data. Bulk crystals of l-HFB have been grown from optimized growth parameters.