We investigated nonlinear optical properties of 1,1-ferrocenedicarbaldehyde (FePz) with a nanosecond Nd:YAG laser pulse at 532 nm. The nonlinear absorption coefficient and nonlinear refractive index were measured using standard Z-scan technique. The experimental results show that the values of the nonlinear absorption coefficient and nonlinear refractive index were 43.32 cm/GW and -1.65 x 10(10) esu, respectively. Moreover, the transmission measurement technique was used to study the optical limiting of FePz. These molecules exhibit an interesting optical limiting performance with nanosecond laser pulses. With good excellent nonlinear optical coefficient, the samples were expected to be the potential applications in optical devices. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.