Mechanical Twisting-Induced Enhancement of Second-Order Optical Nonlinearity in a Flexible Molecular Crystal

Flexible molecular crystals are essential for advancing smart materials, providing unique functionality and adaptability for applications in next-generation electronics, pharmaceuticals, and energy storage. However, the optical applications of flexible molecular crystals have been largely restricted to linear optics, with nonlinear optical (NLO) properties rarely explored. Herein, we report on the application of mechanical twisting of flexible molecular crystals for second-order nonlinear optics. The crystal formed through the self-assembly of the model compound 9-anthraldehyde (AA) features an intrinsic chiral and noncentrosymmetric structure, demonstrating high efficiency second harmonic generation (SHG) and NLO circular dichroism, which could be greatly enhanced by macroscopic mechanical twisting. The anisotropic molecular stacking imparts the AA crystal with mechanical flexibility of combined elastic bending and plastic twisting. The isochiral mechanical twisting could greatly enhance the SHG intensities by an order of magnitude depending on their M- or P-configuration. Meanwhile, the SHG circular dichroism factor gSHG-CD of the isochiral twisted crystal is greatly increased, achieving the highest reported NLO anisotropy factor among organic NLO materials. These boosted NLO performances of SHG intensity and nonlinear chiroptical response are expected to greatly expand the photonic applications of flexible molecular crystals.