Rapid growth of a large-scale (600 mm aperture) KDP crystal and its optical quality

Abstract

AbstractPotassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) single crystals are the only nonlinear crystals currently used for electro-optic switches and frequency converters in inertial confinement fusion research, due to their large dimension and exclusive physical properties. Based on the traditional solution-growth process, large bulk KDP crystals, usually with sizes up to 600 $\times $ 600 mm$^{{2}}$ so as to make a frequency doubler for the facility requirement loading highly flux of power laser, can be grown in standard Holden-type crystallizers, without spontaneous nucleation and visible defects, one to two orders of magnitude faster than by conventional methods. Pure water and KDP raw material with a few ion impurities such as Fe, Cr, and Al (less than 0.1 ppm) were used. The rapid-growth method includes extreme conditions such as temperature range from 60 to 35$^{\circ }$C, overcooling up to 5$^{\circ }$C, growth rates exceeding 10 mm/day, and crystal size up to 600 mm. The optical parameters of KDP crystals were determined. The optical properties of crystals determined indicate that they are of favorable quality for application in the facility.