Spectrochimica Acta Part A 78 (2011) 771–776 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Spectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/saa Growth and characterization of 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzophenone single crystal using modified vertical Bridgman technique T. Suthan a , N.P. Rajesh a,∗ , C.K. Mahadevan b , G. Bhagavannarayana c a Centre for Crystal Growth, SSN College of Engineering, Kalavakkam-603110, India b Physics Research Centre, S.T. Hindu College, Nagercoil 629 002, India c C.G.C. Section, National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi 110 012, India article info Article history: Received 4 June 2010 Received in revised form 21 October 2010 Accepted 9 December 2010 PACS: 61.05.cp 61.66.Hq 81.10.Fq 87.19.rf Keywords: Organic compound Crystal growth Melt method X-ray diffraction studies Optical properties Dielectric properties abstract The 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzophenone single crystal has been grown by the modified vertical Bridg- man technique using the double wall ampoule. The grown crystal was confirmed by single and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy analyses. High resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD) analysis indicates the crystalline perfection of the grown crystal. The cutoff wavelength of the grown crystal was analyzed by optical studies. The dielectric measurements were car- ried out and the results indicate an increase in dielectric and conductivity parameters with the increase of temperature at all frequencies. The thermal property of the grown crystal was studied by thermo gravimetric (TG) and differential thermal analyses (DTA). © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction In recent years, an appreciable attention is given to grow organic crystals for technological applications. Microelectronics industry needs replacement of dielectric materials in multilevel intercon- nect structures with new low dielectric constant (ε r ) materials, as an interlayer dielectric (ILD) which surrounds and insulates inter- connect wiring. Lowering the ε r values of the ILD decreases the RC delay, lowers power consumption and reduces ‘crosstalk’ between nearby interconnects [1]. The measurement of dielectric constant and dielectric loss as a function of frequency and temperature is of interest both from theoretical point of view and from application aspects. Practically, the presence of a dielectric between the plates of a condenser enhances the capacitance. Permittivity characteri- zation may yield some useful initial information. There are several methods for crystal growth. Solution methods, namely slow cooling or slow evaporation of solutions, are commonly used for the growth of organic molecular crystals. In the case of some organic mate- ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +91 044 27474844; fax: +91 044 27474844. E-mail addresses: rajeshnp@ssn.edu.in, rajeshnp@hotmail.com (N.P. Rajesh). rials solution growth methods are not suitable due to undesired solvent or compound associations occurring during the growth and solvent inclusions can reduce the optical quality. Melt growth techniques are more convenient and fast method for growing crys- tals. Melt techniques such as Bridgman technique and Czochralski technique are suitable to grow large size bulk single crystals [2]. The vertical Bridgman technique is the simple and best technique for the growth of good quality organic and inorganic crystals with limited period. In the Bridgman growth the solid–liquid interface shape is a key factor to determine the quality of the growth. The 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzophenone is a non-hygroscopic simple organic material with molecular formula C 14 H 12 O 2 . The Bridgman techniques, many different shapes of ampoules were developed to grow crystals [3–5]. In the double wall ampoule the temperature stress in the inner tube is less than that of the outer tube and for this reason the good quality crystal can be grown. The double wall ampoule inner tube has the bent capillary, which is very useful to grow good quality crystals. In the present work we have grown the 2-hydroxy-4-methoxybenzophenone single crystal using the dou- ble wall ampoule by modified vertical Bridgman technique. The grown crystal was characterized by single crystal XRD, powder XRD, FTIR, HRXRD, TG/DTA, optical and dielectric studies. 1386-1425/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.saa.2010.12.012