Nonlinear Optical Properties of Sodium Copper Chlorophyllin in Aqueous Solution

Background Sodium copper chlorophyllin (SCC), as one of the derivatives of chlorophyll – with its inherent green features; good stability for heat, light, acids and alkalies; unique antimicrobial capability; and particular deodorization performance – is widely applied in some fields such as the food industry, medicine and health care, daily cosmetic industry etc. SCC, as one of the metal porphyrins, has attracted much attention because of its unique electronic band structure and photon conversion performance. To promote the application of SCC in materials science; energy research and photonics, such as fast optical communications; and its use in nonlinear optical materials, solar photovoltaic cells, all-optical switches, optical limiters and saturable absorbers, great efforts should be dedicated to studying its nonlinear optical (NLO) properties. Methods In this study, the absorption spectra and NLO properties of SCC in aqueous solution at different concentrations were measured. The Z-scan technique was used to determine NLO properties. Results The results indicated that the absorption spectra of SCC exhibit 2 characteristic absorption peaks located at the wavelengths 405 and 630 nm, and the values of the peaks increase with increasing SCC concentration. The results also showed that SCC exhibits reverse saturation absorption and negative nonlinear refraction (self-defocusing). Conclusions It can be seen that SCC has good optical nonlinearity which will be convenient for applications in materials science, energy research and photonics.