Studying the surface morphology, linear and nonlinear optical properties of manganese (III) phthalocyanine chloride/FTO films

Highlights: • MnPcCl film were prepared by the thermal vacuum evaporating technique. • Surface morphology shows that the MnPcCl film is formed by spherical nanoparticles. • The MnPcCl film deposited on the FTO revealed a high optical laser limitation. Scientific review of laser protective materials is currently primarily focused on improving linear transmittance and developing the optical limiting ability. Due to its unique large π electronic conjugated structure, phthalocyanine has become a successful optical limiting material. Thin films of manganese (III) phthalocyanine chloride (MnPcCl) were formed on FTO substrates using traditional thermal deposition techniques. The X-ray diffraction demonstrated that there is an amorphous structure for MnPcCl films. AFM's surface morphology shows that the MnPcCl film is homogeneous and formed by spherical and elliptical nanoparticles. The thickness dependences of both linear and nonlinear optical properties of MnPcCl films were also investigated via UV–Vis-IR measurements. The absorption coefficient examination indicated that the films were distinguished by an indirect transition with two energy gaps. The power of the He–Ne (633 nm) and green (533 nm) lasers were used to estimate optical limiting behavior. The MnPcCl film deposited on the FTO revealed a high optical laser limitation that could be acceptable for different nonlinear optical devices, like laser filters.