Low temperature molten salt synthesis of noncentrosymmetric (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and centrosymmetric (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2

Qin Wang a, Jinxuan Ren a, Dan Wang a, Liling Cao a, Xuehua Dong a, Ling Huang *a, Daojiang Gao a and Guohong Zou *b
aCollege of Chemistry and Materials Science, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, 610066, P. R. China
bCollege of Chemistry, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610065, P. R. China. E-mail: huangl026@sina.com; zough@scu.edu.cn

Received 10th December 2022 , Accepted 28th February 2023

First published on 1st March 2023


Abstract

Two fluorine antimony nitrates named (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 have been successfully synthesized by a low temperature molten salt method. Although these two title compounds possess NO3 groups and similar Sb-polyhedra, they exhibit completely different macroscopic centricities, (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 being noncentrosymmetric while (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 being centrosymmetric, which is induced by the discrepant coordination environments of Sb3+. Interestingly, the noncentrosymmetric (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 exhibits a strong second harmonic generation response (3.3 × KDP), a large birefringence (0.098@546 nm) and a large band gap (3.77 eV), indicating its potential as a UV nonlinear optical material. Detailed structure–property analysis confirms that the superior optical property is due to the synergistic effect of the planar π-conjugated NO3 groups and the stereochemically active lone pair containing Sb3+ cations.


Introduction

At present, nonlinear optical (NLO) materials, which are the pivotal component of the solid-state laser, have developed to an important branch of modern optics and are widely used in information, medical, scientific research, military and industrial manufacturing fields.1–6 In general, an ideal NLO crystal should meet the following conditions: large nonlinear optical coefficient, appropriate birefringence, wide transmission range, high laser damage threshold, stable physicochemical properties, and so on.7–10 In fact, few compounds could satisfy all of the above conditions, for some of the criteria are contradictory. Therefore, the design and synthesis of NLO materials with excellent overall properties has become a great challenge.

It is well known that the primary characteristic of a NLO crystalline material is that it has a noncentrosymmetric (NCS) structure; that is, the compound must crystallize in a non-centrosymmetric space group.11,12 It has been found that the reasonable combination of different asymmetric chromophores is an effective tactic for the synthesis of NLO materials, which is conducive to the generation of large second harmonic generation (SHG) response.13,14 Common asymmetric chromophores include (1) planar π-conjugated anions, such as BO33−, CO32−, and NO3;15–17 (2) distorted polyhedra of d0 and d10 transition metal ions, such as Ti4+, Mo6+, Zn2+, and Hg2+;18–22 (3) lone pair electron cations with stereochemical activity, such as Pb2+ and Bi3+.23–25 In comparison to planar π-conjugated anionic ions, the BO33− system is relatively mature at present, and numerous splendid NLO crystals have been obtained, such as β-BaB2O4 (β-BBO),26 LiB3O5 (LBO),27 and KBe2BO3F2 (KBBF).28 The CO32− anion is unstable and easily decomposed at high temperatures, and the crystal growth of carbonates is difficult. Moreover, among them, NO3 has been proved to be a splendid functional anion to constitute NLO materials because of its large microscopic second-order polarization and mild synthesis conditions conducive to the growth of large-sized single crystals.29,30 As for the cationic ions, compounds containing metal ions (Pb2+, Bi3+, Sn2+, and Sb3+) with lone pair electrons always exhibit excellent NLO properties, such as Pb3Mg3TeP2O14 (13.5 × KDP),31 K2Bi2(SO4)2Cl4 (5.5 × KDP),32 [Sn2(H2PO2)3]Br (3.0 × KDP)33 and K2Sb(P2O7)F (4.0 × KDP).34 Among them, the development of antimony(III)-based nonlinear optical crystal materials is proceeding slowly due to the easy oxidation and hydrolysis of Sb3+. In the mid- and far-infrared region, some Sb(III)-chalcogenides have been reported,35,36 whereas in the ultraviolet region, few antimony(III)-based oxide or oxyfluoride nonlinear optical materials have been reported due to the difficulty in the crystal growth.

Compared with the aqueous phase reactions like hydrothermal and aqueous solution methods, molten salt synthesis could provide an anhydrous environment for the reaction, which would effectively solve the oxidation and hydrolysis problems. Conventional molten salts tend to have a high melting point, which is not suitable for the system containing Sb3+ cations; the exploration of a suitable molten salt is required.37 Ionic liquids (ILs) are a novel type of low temperature molten salt; they show advantages in material synthesis in some specific fields.38,39 However, they are organic salts composed of entirely ionic species, and the products of these reactions are extremely sensitive to air and moisture; a proper inorganic molten salt with a low melting point would be a better choice.40 Nitrates possess the ability to dissolve many inorganic and organic compounds, for that nitrates exhibit low melting point temperature; especially, NH4NO3 has a melting point as low as 170 °C, and it could be used as a good medium for the reaction. In addition, molten salt nitrates can also provide NLO functional units in the reaction to construct NLO materials.

Based on the above views, SbF3 with active lone pair electrons was combined with a low temperature molten salt nitrate NH4NO3 to explore novel NLO materials, and two ammonium antimony nitrates named (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3[thin space (1/6-em)]41 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 were successfully obtained. The two title compounds possess the same chemical composition but different atomic ratios, which induce their discrepant coordination modes of Sb3+ and opposite symmetries. In particular, the NCS compound (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 reveals a large SHG efficiency of about 3.3 × KDP and large birefringence of 0.098@546 nm.

Experimental section

Synthesis of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2

The reaction reagents NH4F (≥96.0%) and SbF3 (≥99.8%) were purchased from Aladdin, and NH4NO3 (≥99.7%) was purchased from Xi Long Chemical without further purification.

Nitrate with a low melting point is a good reactant for the synthesis of molten salt method. We first mixed NH4NO3 and SbF3 in a ratio of 3[thin space (1/6-em)]:[thin space (1/6-em)]1 for (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and 2[thin space (1/6-em)]:[thin space (1/6-em)]1 for (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2. Then, no further reagent was added for the synthesis of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3, and 1 mmol NH4F (0.037 g) was added for (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2. After the mixture was fully ground, it was placed in a Teflon autoclave and heated at 100 °C for 4 days. Then the mixture was cooled to room temperature at a rate of 5 °C h−1. Colorless bulk crystals of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 were obtained, respectively (Fig. S1). Notably, the atomic ratio of the synthesized compounds is exactly the same as that of the raw materials. Therefore, the molten salt of nitrates could not only provide the anhydrous environment to inhibit the hydrolysis of Sb3+, but also participate in the reaction as reactants. By adjusting the ratio of raw materials, the products change accordingly; hence, the molten salt method could make the synthesis of novel compounds more effective.

Single crystal structure determination

The crystal structures of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 were measured using a Rigaku XtaLAB Synergy R diffractometer, and determined by the direct method through SHELX-2014.42 The coordinates of all the atoms were solved by the least square plane convergence algorithm based on F2 full matrix. Finally, PLATON was used to check the space group, and there was no higher space group.43 The crystallographic data and other relevant data of the two compounds are presented in Table 1 and Tables S1–S4.
Table 1 Crystal data and structure refinement for (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2
a R 1(F) = ∑||Fo| − |Fc||/∑|Fo|. wR2(Fo2) = [∑w(Fo2Fc2)2/∑w(Fo2)2]1/2.
Formula (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2
Formula weight 418.91 374.07
Crystal system Monoclinic Orthorhombic
Space group P21 Pnma
a (Å) 9.0362(4) 12.6805(4)
b (Å) 7.4301(3) 12.3608(3)
c (Å) 9.5591(4) 7.0737(2)
α (°) 90 90
β (°) 101.118(4) 90
γ (°) 90 90
V3) 629.75(5) 1108.74(5)
Z 2 4
ρ(calcd) (g cm−3) 2.209 2.241
Temperature (K) 297.07(10) 295.94(10)
λ (Å) 0.71073 0.71073
F (000) 408.0 725.0
μ (mm−1) 2.284 2.535
R 1, wR2 (I > 2σ(I))a 0.0389/0.1046 0.0189/0.0401
R 1, wR2 (all data) 0.0422/0.1082 0.0234/0.0415
GOF on F2 1.042 1.067
Flack parameter 0.04(2)


Powder X-ray Diffraction

A Smart Lab powder X-ray diffractometer with Cu-Kα radiation was adopted to measure the powder X-ray diffraction spectrum of the target compounds, with a rate of 8° min−1, a 2θ range of 5–70° and a scanning step width of 0.02°.

Thermal analysis

Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) measurements were carried out on a Discovery-TGA thermal analyzer. The crystalline material was loaded into a platinum crucible and heated from 0 °C to 800 °C at 10 °C min−1 under a N2 atmosphere.

Infrared spectroscopy

The infrared spectra of the two title compounds were measured using a Vertex 70 Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR) with KBr as the background. KBr (100 mg) and powder samples (1 mg) of the title compounds were thoroughly mixed in an agate mortar and then pressed into transparent plates with a diameter of 13 mm and a thickness of about 1 mm. The wavelength range was 400 cm−1 to 4000 cm−1.

UV−Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

(NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 were tested using a Shimadzu UV-2600 spectrophotometer at room temperature with BaSO4 as a standard reference, and the test range was 185–800 nm.

Birefringence measurements

The birefringence characteristics of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 were measured using a polarizing microscope (Carl Zeiss Axioscope 5). The wavelength of the light source is 546 nm.

Frequency-doubling effect

The powder SHG signal of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 was measured by the Kurtz and Perry method under a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser with 1064 nm radiation.44 (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 samples were divided into six different sizes (25–45, 45–58, 58–75, 75–106, 106–150 and 150–212 μm) for testing, and the particle size of KH2PO4 (KDP) references was consistent with that of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 samples.

Theoretical calculations

In order to understand the electronic structures of the two compounds more clearly, their band structures, density of states (DOS) and partial density of states (PDOS) were calculated by density functional theory (DFT).45 The Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof (PAW-PBE) functional was used in the calculation,46 as implemented in the Vienna Ab initio Simulation Package (VASP).47–50 The k-points in the Brillouin band were set to be 4 × 7 × 4 for (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and 3 × 3 × 5 for (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, respectively, and the cutoff kinetic energy was set to 550 eV for both of them.

Results and discussion

Crystal structure description

(NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 crystallizes in a NCS space group of P21, consisting of one Sb atom, three F atoms, three N atoms, nine O atoms, and three NH4+ cations. In this compound, each Sb atom forms the [SbF3] complex with three F atoms (Fig. 1a), and the distance between the Sb–F bond is 1.921–1.968 Å. The [SbF3] complex and the NO3 unit are arranged separately in the crystal. NH4+ is distributed in the cavity of the entire crystal as a charge compensation unit, which is represented by a grey tetrahedron. The [SbF3] complex and NO3 moiety are further linked with NH4+ through N–H⋯O and N–H⋯F hydrogen bonds, with the hydrogen bond length in the range of 2.033–2.159 Å and 1.892–2.614 Å, respectively (Fig. 1b).
image file: d2qi02637f-f1.tif
Fig. 1 (a and c) The representations of different coordination modes of Sb3+ and a unit cell. (b and d) The arrangement mode of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2.

(NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 crystallizes in a centrosymmetric (CS) space group of Pnma, consisting of one Sb atom, four F atoms, six O atoms, two N atoms and three NH4+. In (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, the Sb atom forms the [SbF4] anion group with four F atoms (Fig. 1c), and the Sb–F bond distance is in the range of 1.941–2.073 Å. NO3 is independently arranged in the crystal with the N–O bond distance in the range of 1.240–1.247 Å. NH4+, as a charge balancing unit, connects the [SbF4] and NO3 units into a 3D network framework through N–H⋯F and N–H⋯O hydrogen bonds (Fig. 1d). The lengths of N–H⋯F and N–H⋯O hydrogen bonds are in the ranges of 1.843–2.060 Å and 2.028–2.171 Å, respectively.

It is generally accepted that the crystal structure of a compound is determined more by the basic structural unit than by the chemical composition. As can be seen from the above descriptions, although (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 possess the same chemical composition, the different atomic ratio induces the coordination discrepancy of Sb3+. Therefore, the different basic building units with different degrees of distortion may ultimately lead to their structural discrepancy. NCS (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 contains a tri-coordinated [SbF3] complex that is scattered, and the lone pair electrons of Sb3+ show two directions that are left and right symmetric along the b axis (Fig. 1b). Sb3+ with different directions are alternately aligned, and the compound (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 exhibits a final NCS structure. In (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, the Sb atom bridges four F atoms to form a twisted seesaw [SbF4] complex, and the lone pair electrons of Sb atoms also exhibit two orientations that are anti-parallel along the a-axis. NO3 in (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 also has anti-parallel orientations along the c axis. For that anti-parallel arrangement of basic units usually leads to a centrosymmetric structure, and hence (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 ultimately presents the CS structure as shown in Fig. 1d. Understanding the key factors dominating the symmetries of crystals and the structure–property relationship is helpful in the exploration of novel NLO materials.

Powder X-ray diffraction

Powder X-ray diffraction was carried out on (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, respectively. The phase purity of the two compounds was verified for that the experimental results were consistent with the fitting results of single crystal X-ray diffraction (Fig. S2).

Thermal properties

Thermogravimetric analysis was performed for (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, respectively. As shown in Fig. S3, (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 could stabilize to 100 °C, while (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 started to decompose at 220 °C. After heating from 100 °C to 800 °C under a nitrogen atmosphere, the total weight loss of the former is about 70%, while that of the latter is about 50%. X-ray powder diffraction was used to determine the heating products of the two compounds, and the final residue was confirmed to be Sb2O4 in both cases, as shown in Fig. S4. (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 possess the same chemical composition, and the difference in their thermal stability may be caused by their different hydrogen bonds.51 Compounds with higher hydrogen bond density and shorter hydrogen bond length always exhibit better thermal stability. Comparing the two title compounds, their hydrogen bond densities are 0.03335 and 0.03788 Å−3, respectively, and the shortest hydrogen bond of 1.843 Å exists in (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2; therefore, (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 should have better thermal stability, which is consistent with the experimental value.

Optical properties

The IR spectra for (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 have been measured and are shown in Fig. S5. The strong bands around 3200 and 1400 cm−1 in (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 can be attributed to anti-symmetric stretching and bending of the N–H bond. The absorption peaks at 1338, 1042 cm−1 in (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and 1378, 1052 cm−1 in (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 are mainly attributed to the symmetric/asymmetric stretching vibration of the NO3 group, and the medium peaks at 832/720 cm−1 and 837/737 cm−1 could be attributed to the bending vibrations of the NO3 group. The characteristic absorption peaks at 561/506/466 cm−1 and 556/518/452 cm−1 originate from the asymmetric stretching and bending vibrations of the Sb–F bond. All the assignments are consistent with previous reports.52,53

UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy was performed on the compounds (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2. It can be seen that their band gaps are 3.77 eV and 3.64 eV, with cutoff edges of 330 nm and 340 nm, respectively (Fig. 2a and b), indicating that the two title compounds are potential UV crystalline materials.


image file: d2qi02637f-f2.tif
Fig. 2 (a and b) The UV optical diffuse reflectance spectra of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2. Inset: the Tauc plot of (F(R))2versus hν for the band-gap energy. (c) The birefringence measurement results of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2. (d) The phase-matching curve and SHG intensity for (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 with KDP as the reference (150–212 μm).

The birefringence of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 was determined using a Carl Zeiss Axioscope 5 polarizing microscope (Fig. 2c). (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 exhibits a moderate birefringence of 0.098@546 nm, while (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 exhibits a large birefringence of 0.164@546 nm, indicating that both compounds are potential birefringent materials. As studied by Lin et al., the introduction of highly polar anisotropic building units with ordered arrangement would induce large birefringence.54 Comparing the orientations of lone pair electrons of Sb3+ and π-conjugated NO3 groups, in (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3, the lone pair electrons with two directions show a certain angle, and NO3 anions also represent a chaotic arrangement. However, in (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, the lone pair electrons are completely parallel to the a axis; meanwhile, NO3 anions are parallel to the c axis. The parallel arrangement of polar functional units is conducive to the generation of large birefringence; therefore, (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 with a CS structure exhibits much larger birefringence than NCS (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3.

NLO properties

Since (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 belongs to the NCS P21 space group, KH2PO4 (KDP) was used as the reference sample for the SHG test. As shown in Fig. 2d, with the increase of grain size of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3, the SHG response increases first and tends to be constant gradually, indicating that (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 is type I phase-matchable. Meanwhile, the SHG signal intensity map of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 shows a strong frequency doubling signal value of about 3.3 × KDP, which could be attributed to the lone pair electrons of Sb3+ and the high density of NO3 anions.

Theoretical calculations

The refractive index dispersion curves of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 have been calculated, which show appropriate anisotropy (Fig. 3a and b). Taking (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 as an example, nz > nx > ny, where nx, ny and nz represent the refractive index in the x, y and z directions, respectively. According to the formula Δn = nzny, the birefringence index Δn is calculated to be 0.111@546 nm for (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and 0.183@546 nm for (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, which are in good agreement with the experimental values.
image file: d2qi02637f-f3.tif
Fig. 3 (a and b) Calculated refractive indexes for compounds (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2. (c and d) The total DOS and partial DOS of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2. The Fermi level is set to 0 eV. (e and f) Electron-density difference maps of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2.

In order to explore the intrinsic relationship between the structure and optical properties for the two title compounds, systematic theoretical calculations were performed based on density functional theory. The direct band gaps of (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 calculated by PBE were 2.95 eV and 3.20 eV, respectively (Fig. S6), which were 0.82 eV and 0.44 eV lower than the experimental values.55 The total and partial state densities (TDOS/PDOS) were also calculated for the two title compounds (Fig. 3c and d), which are similar in terms of structural similarity. The results show that in the range of −25 to 0 eV, the valence bands of these two compounds are mainly from H-1s, O-2p, N-2p, and F-2p orbitals, with a small amount from Sb-5p and O-2s orbitals. From 0 eV to 15 eV, the N-2p, O-2p, and Sb-5p orbitals make the major contribution to both compounds. It is well known that the optical properties of compounds are mainly caused by electron transitions near the Fermi level. That is, the [SbFx] polyhedra and NO3 groups are primarily responsible for the linear and nonlinear optics of the title compounds. The results affirm the strategy that the synergistic effect of Sb3+ cations containing lone pair electrons and planar π-conjugated NO3 groups should be helpful in generating excellent optical properties, as confirmed by the electron density difference map. As shown in Fig. 3e and f, highly asymmetric lobes can be observed for the Sb3+ cations in (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, indicating the stereoscopic activity of lone pair electrons on Sb atoms. Meanwhile, a deepened N–O bond in the red electron cloud can be observed, indicating the presence of electron transfer in the π-conjugated NO3 unit.

Conclusions

Two antimony nitrates, (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2, were successfully synthesized by adopting low temperature molten salt synthesis. The discrepancy in stoichiometric ratios induces the diverse coordination environments of Sb3+, which further results in the different macroscopic centricities of the two compounds. Owing to the synergistic effect of the π-conjugated NO3 group and the lone pair containing Sb3+ cations, both the compounds (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 and (NH4)3SbF4(NO3)2 reveal a large birefringence of 0.098@546 nm and 0.164@546 nm. NCS (NH4)3SbF3(NO3)3 in particular has a strong SHG coefficient of about 3.3 × KDP, indicating that antimony nitrates are promising superior optical materials. The low temperature molten salt method provides a new way to overcome the difficulty in crystal growth which is easy hydrolysis and oxidation.

Conflicts of interest

There are no conflicts to declare.

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Dr Dingguo Xu at the College of Chemistry, Sichuan University, for help in the Vienna Ab initio Simulation Package calculations. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (no. 22122106, 22071158, 21971171).

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Footnote

Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Additional crystallographic data, crystal photographs, XRD patterns, TGA curves, XRD patterns after melting, IR spectra and band structures calculation. CCDC 2222170 and 2222171. For ESI and crystallographic data in CIF or other electronic format see DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/d2qi02637f

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