Single crystals of dimension 10 x 5 x 5 mm(3) of allylthiourea mercury chloride were synthesized from aqueous solution using slow evaporation technique at ambient temperature. The grown crystals are confirmed by elemental analysis. The band gap of Allylthiourea mercury chloride crystal was found to be about 3.18 eV. The optical nonlinearity of the crystal sample was studied using the open aperture Z-scan technique employing a nanosecond laser at 532 nm, and a three-photon absorption effect has been found. The electrical properties such as dielectric constant, dielectric loss and ac conductivity of the sample were carried out by Agillent E 4980 A LCR meter at different temperatures. An improved photopyroelectric technique was used to find the thermal parameters of the crystal. The piezo electric charge coefficient is also determined. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.