title: Plastic Transition to Switch Nonlinear Optical Properties Showing the Record High Contrast in a Single-Component Molecular Crystal.
abstract: To switch bulk nonlinear optical (NLO) effects represents an exciting new branch of NLO material science, whereas it remains a great challenge to achieve high contrast for "on/off" of quadratic NLO effects in crystalline materials. Here, we report the supereminent NLO-switching behaviors of a single-component plastic crystal, 2-(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (1), which shows a record high contrast of at least ∼150, exceeding all the known crystalline switches. Such a breakthrough is clearly elucidated from the slowing down of highly isotropic molecular motions during plastic-to-rigid transition. The deep understanding of its intrinsic plasticity and superior NLO property allows the construction of a feasible switching mechanism. As a unique class of substances with short-range disorder embedded in long-range ordered crystalline lattice, plastic crystals enable response to external stimuli and fulfill specific photoelectric functions, which open a newly conceptual avenue for the designing of new functional materials.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials Chemistry and Physics, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Zhihua
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials Chemistry and Physics, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Tianliang
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials Chemistry and Physics, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Xitao
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials Chemistry and Physics, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Maochun
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials Chemistry and Physics, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Junhua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Luo