Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 2, 2026
06:44
From Molecules to Materials: Engineering New Ionic Liquid Crystals Through Halogen Bonding
Published on: March 24, 2018
71.2K
Cd[C(NH2)2O]2Cl2: A Urea-Based Open-Framework Crystal with Concurrent Short UV Cutoff Edge and Large Birefringence.
Chen-Yuan Ma1, Xin-Mei Zeng2, Jia-Tong Li1
1College of Physics and Astronomy, China West Normal University, Nanchong 637002, China.
Inorganic Chemistry
|March 3, 2026
Summary
Researchers developed a new birefringent crystal, Cd[C(NH2)2O]2Cl2, using a cadmium-based open framework. This crystal offers a wide bandgap and significant optical anisotropy for advanced optics applications.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Crystallography
- Optics
Background:
- High-performance birefringent crystals are essential for modern optics.
- Conventional crystals face limitations in transmission windows and birefringence.
Purpose of the Study:
- To overcome limitations of conventional birefringent crystals.
- To synthesize a novel crystal with enhanced optical properties.
Main Methods:
- Assembled anisotropic π-conjugated urea ligands via a cadmium-based open framework.
- Utilized distorted Cd-based octahedra and urea-derived hydrogen-bonding network.
- Characterized the crystal structure and optical properties of Cd[C(NH2)2O]2Cl2.
Main Results:
- Successfully synthesized a novel birefringent crystal, Cd[C(NH2)2O]2Cl2.
- The crystal exhibits a 4 × 4 × 6 open-framework skeleton.
- Achieved a wide bandgap (201 nm UV cutoff) and substantial optical anisotropy (0.117 birefringence at 546 nm).
Conclusions:
- Cd[C(NH2)2O]2Cl2 presents an excellent balance of wide bandgap and optical anisotropy.
- The novel crystal structure and properties are promising for practical optical applications.
- This work contributes to the development of advanced optical materials.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
02:42Ionic Crystal Structures
18.0K
Ionic crystals consist of two or more different kinds of ions that usually have different sizes. The packing of these ions into a crystal structure is more complex than the packing of metal atoms that are the same size.
Most monatomic ions behave as charged spheres, and their attraction for ions of opposite charge is the same in every direction. Consequently, stable structures for ionic compounds result (1) when ions of one charge are surrounded by as many ions as possible of the opposite...
Most monatomic ions behave as charged spheres, and their attraction for ions of opposite charge is the same in every direction. Consequently, stable structures for ionic compounds result (1) when ions of one charge are surrounded by as many ions as possible of the opposite...
18.0K
02:18X-ray Crystallography
21.6K
The size of the unit cell and the arrangement of atoms in a crystal may be determined from measurements of the diffraction of X-rays by the crystal, termed X-ray crystallography.
Diffraction
Diffraction is the change in the direction of travel experienced by an electromagnetic wave when it encounters a physical barrier whose dimensions are comparable to those of the wavelength of the light. X-rays are electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths about as long as the distance between neighboring...
Diffraction
Diffraction is the change in the direction of travel experienced by an electromagnetic wave when it encounters a physical barrier whose dimensions are comparable to those of the wavelength of the light. X-rays are electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths about as long as the distance between neighboring...
21.6K
02:58Crystal Field Theory - Octahedral Complexes
28.4K
Crystal Field Theory
To explain the observed behavior of transition metal complexes (such as colors), a model involving electrostatic interactions between the electrons from the ligands and the electrons in the unhybridized d orbitals of the central metal atom has been developed. This electrostatic model is crystal field theory (CFT). It helps to understand, interpret, and predict the colors, magnetic behavior, and some structures of coordination compounds of transition metals.
CFT focuses on...
To explain the observed behavior of transition metal complexes (such as colors), a model involving electrostatic interactions between the electrons from the ligands and the electrons in the unhybridized d orbitals of the central metal atom has been developed. This electrostatic model is crystal field theory (CFT). It helps to understand, interpret, and predict the colors, magnetic behavior, and some structures of coordination compounds of transition metals.
CFT focuses on...
28.4K
02:46Crystal Field Theory - Tetrahedral and Square Planar Complexes
47.5K
Tetrahedral Complexes
Crystal field theory (CFT) is applicable to molecules in geometries other than octahedral. In octahedral complexes, the lobes of the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals point directly at the ligands. For tetrahedral complexes, the d orbitals remain in place, but with only four ligands located between the axes. None of the orbitals points directly at the tetrahedral ligands. However, the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals (along the Cartesian axes) overlap with the ligands less than...
Crystal field theory (CFT) is applicable to molecules in geometries other than octahedral. In octahedral complexes, the lobes of the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals point directly at the ligands. For tetrahedral complexes, the d orbitals remain in place, but with only four ligands located between the axes. None of the orbitals points directly at the tetrahedral ligands. However, the dx2−y2 and dz2 orbitals (along the Cartesian axes) overlap with the ligands less than...
47.5K
01:18Unit Cells
126
A crystal's internal structure is an orderly array of atoms, ions, or molecules, and the details of this array significantly influence the solid's properties. In a crystal, periodically repeating 'structural motifs' - which could be atoms, molecules, or groups thereof - create a 'space lattice.' This is essentially a three-dimensional, infinite array of points, each surrounded by its neighbors in an identical way, forming the basic structure of the crystal.A 'unit cell' is a theoretical...
126
01:29Determination of Crystal Structures
135
In the late 1800s, the revelation that light extended beyond visible wavelengths led to the discovery of X-rays by Wilhelm Roentgen. Recognized as high-energy electromagnetic radiation with short wavelengths, X-rays prompted exploration into their interaction with crystals. Max von Laue proposed in 1912 that the periodic arrangement of atoms, ions, or molecules in crystals would cause them to diffract X-rays, a hypothesis confirmed through experiments with copper sulfate and zinc sulfide...
135