Promising avenues of research in nanoscience: chemistry of semiconductor nanoparticles

The state-of-the-art in the field of research on semiconductor nanoparticles is analyzed; cadmium chalcogenide nanoparticles are considered in most detail. Emphasis is placed on the methods of synthesis and on control of the size, composition, and structure of semiconductor nanoparticles — “quantum dots”. The state of the surface plays a significant role in determining the properties of nanoparticles. Organized nanostructures comprised of quantum dots are considered. The properties of semiconductor nanoparticles are described. Prospects for applications of semiconductor nanomaterials are discussed. Dedicated to Academician V. I. Minkin on the occasion of his 70th birthday. __________ Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 4, pp. 811–836, April, 2005.