KDP - Family Single Crystals (Series in Optics and Optoelectronics)

The KDP family of single crystals is composed of compounds of alkali metals with light or heavy (hydro, deutero) water and oxides of phosphate or arsenate, including ammonium, potassium, rubidium and caesium dihydro- and dideutero-phosphates, and similar arsenates. While not occurring in nature, their production exceeds that of any other water-soluble crystals and the demand for bigger and more optically pure crystals is ever increasing. KDP-Family Single Crystals is a comprehensive investigation of the crystallization mechanism for these systems. The first part of the book collects the majority of the available data on the physico-chemical analysis of these systems. This is complemented by a review of contemporary concepts related to the crystal growth dislocation mechanism under the influence of impurities, changing supersaturation, and temperature. This is not only relevant to the growth of KDP single crystals but to the majority of crystals grown from low- and high-temperature solutions. Finally, attention is given to the important problem of speeding up the production processes for the growth of these crystals while maintaining the quality of the crystals. The in-depth coverage that KDP-Family Single Crystals provides to the art of crystal growth techniques makes it an essential reference work for all those working in the field of crystal growth and to those using KDP-family crystals in quantum electronics devices.