Thermal degradation, dielectric and magnetic studies on copper tartrate trihydrate crystals

Single crystals of copper tartrate trihydrate (CTT) with orthorhombic structure were grown in silica gel medium, by the controlled chemical reaction method. The Fourier transform infrared spectrum in the range 400–4,000 cm−1 were recorded and the vibrational bands corresponding to different functional groups are assigned. Thermal stability of the grown crystals was investigated by differential thermal analysis, thermogravimetric and differential scanning calorimetry studies. The presence of water molecules and the dehydration stages are discussed. The dielectric studies on CTT crystals were performed in the frequency range of 100–5 MHz at three different temperatures which indicated that the dielectric constant decreases with frequency and increases with temperature. The ac conductivity is found to increase with frequency and temperature. The vibrating sample magnetometer studies on these crystals confirmed the diamagnetic nature of the CTT crystals.