Photoassisted synthesis of CdSe and core-shell CdSe/CdS quantum dots

This paper describes the synthesis of core-shell CdSe/CdS quantum dots (QDs) in aqueous solution by a simple photoassisted method. CdSe was prepared from cadmium nitrate and 1,1-dimethylselenourea precursors under illumination for up to 3 h using a pulsed Nd:YAG laser at 532 nm. The effects that the temperature and the laser irradiation process have on the synthesis of CdSe were monitored by a series of experiments using the precursors at a Cd:Se concentration ratio of 4. Upon increasing the temperature (80-140 degrees C), the size of the CdSe QDs increases and the time required for reaching a maximum photoluminescence (PL) is shortened. Although the as-prepared CdSe QDs possess greater quantum yields (up to 0.072%) compared to those obtained by microwave heating (0.016%), they still fluoresce only weakly. After passivation of CdSe (prepared at 80 degrees C) by CdS using thioacetamide as the S source (Se:S concentration ratio of 1) at 80 degrees C for 24 h, the quantum yield of the core-shell CdSe/CdS QDs at 603 nm is 2.4%. Under UV irradiation of CdSe/CdS for 24 h using a 100-W Hg-Xe lamp, the maximum quantum yield of the stable QDs is 60% at 589 nm. A small bandwidth (W1/2 < 35 nm) indicates the narrow size distribution of the as-prepared core-shell CdSe/CdS QDs. This simple photoassisted method also allows the preparation of differently sized (3.7-6.3-nm diameters) core-shell CdSe/CdS QDs that emit in a wide range (from green to red) when excited at 480 nm.     

Water-soluble CdSe and CdSe/CdS nanocrystals: a greener synthetic route

We report a new green synthetic route of CdSe and core-shell CdSe/CdS nanoparticles (NPs) in aqueous solutions. This route is performed under water-bath temperature, using Se powder as a selenium source to prepare CdSe NPs, and H(2)S generated by the reaction of Na(2)SH(2)SO(4) as a sulfur source to synthesize core-shell CdSe/CdS NPs at 25-35 degrees C. The synthesis time of every step is only 20 min. After illumination with ambient natural light, photoluminescence (PL) intensities of CdSe NPs enhanced up to 100 times. The core-shell CdSe/CdS NPs have stronger photoactive luminescence with quantum yields over 20%. The obtained CdSe NPs exhibit a favorable narrow PL band (FWHM: 50-37 nm) with increasing molar ratio of Cd/Se from 4:1 to 10:1 at pH 9.1 in the crude solution, whereas PL band of corresponding CdSe/CdS NPs is slightly narrower. The emission maxima of nanocrystals can be tuned in a wider range from 492 to 592 nm in water by changing synthesis temperature of CdSe core than those reported previously. The resulting new route is of particular interest as it uses readily-available reagents and simple equipment to synthesize high-quality water-soluble CdSe and CdSe/CdS nanocrystals.     

室温水相合成CdTe/CdS核/壳结构量子点

开发了一种以聚乙烯吡咯烷酮为分散剂和稳定剂经条件温和的室温水相合成光谱可调的水溶性CdTe/CdS核/壳结构量子点的方法:向新鲜制备的CdTe量子点溶液中加入硫源,继续反应即可生成CdS壳层,通过控制硫源的浓度即可控制CdS壳层厚度,从而调节光谱性质和增强稳定性.采用XRD、TEM、HRTEM、荧光光谱以及紫外-可见光...     

Synthesis of CdTe nanocrystals through program process of microwave irradiation

A novel method, the program process of microwave irradiation (PPMI), which commendably integrates good qualities of microwave irradiation and a programmed heating process, is presented to synthesize high-quality CdTe nanocrystals in aqueous solution. Microwave irradiation, which acts as the heating mode of PPMI, is highly favorable for a narrow size distribution and low concentration of surface defects of nanocrystals. On the other hand, two correlative processes (the first process and the second process) are utilized in PPMI to actualize the programmed heating process, which is an effective strategy to improve the quality of nanocrystals. Thus, a series (diameters approximately 2-4 nm) of highly luminescent (PLQY approximately 30-68%) CdTe nanocrystals were rapidly prepared (reaction time approximately 1-30 min) in aqueous phase through PPMI.     

Novel Strategy for Synthesis of High Quality CdTe Nanocrystals in Aqueous Solution

A novel aqueous route for the synthesis of high-quality CdTe nanocrystals（NCs） is presented in this article. With both glutathione（GSH） and cysteine[n（GSH）：n（cysteine）=1：3] as stabilizers, high-quality CdTe NCs with controllable photoluminescence（PL） wavelength from 500 to 630 nm can be prepared within 4 h. As-prepared CdTe NCs show higher photoluminescence quantum yields（PLQY） compared with CdTe NCs prepared via other aqueous methods. When the fluorescent emission peak appeared in orange-red window, the PLQY reaches 70% or above at room temperature without any post-preparative treatment.     

General shape control of colloidal CdS, CdSe, CdTe quantum rods and quantum rod heterostructures

We report a general synthetic method for the formation of shape-controlled CdS, CdSe and CdTe nanocrystals and mixed-semiconductor heterostructures. The crystal growth kinetics can be manipulated by changing the injection rate of the chalcogen precursor, allowing the particle shape-spherical or rodlike-to be tuned without changing the underlying chemistry. A single injection of precursor leads to isotropic spherical growth, whereas multiple injections promote epitaxial growth along the length of the c-axis. This method was extended to produce linear type I and type II semiconductor nanocrystal heterostructures.     

CdS量子点的一步法合成及量子产率

以油酸为配体,十八烯为溶剂,采用一步法合成了CdS量子点,研究了反应温度、反应时间和Cd/S的摩尔比对量子点光谱性能的影响.X射线衍射(XRD)和高分辨透射电镜(HRTEM)测试结果表明,所获得的CdS量子点为立方闪锌矿结构,且尺寸分布均一,结晶度高,其较强的带边发光、尖锐的紫外吸收峰以及狭窄的荧光发射峰进一步表明量子...     

Recombination dynamics of CdTe/CdS core-shell nanocrystals

The recombination dynamics of zinc-blende-type, deep-red emitting CdTe/CdS core-shell nanocrystals is studied over a wide temperature range. Two characteristic decay regimes are found: a temperature-dependent decay component of a few nanoseconds and a long-living temperature-independent component of approximately 315 ns. The average decay time of the exciton states changes from 20 to 5ns when the temperature is increased from 15 to 295 K. At low temperatures, the observed decay behavior is assigned to thermally induced population and decay of the allowed exchange-split exciton states. At temperatures above T>100 K, nonradiative decay channels involving phonons start to contribute to the exciton recombination. The observed broad distribution in decay times, monitored by stretched exponential fitting functions, we explain by variations in the electron-hole overlap caused by a partly incomplete CdTe/CdS core-shell structure and the nearly energy-degenerated bright and dark state superposition.     

基于聚合物多齿配体的高性能CdTe量子点的微波水相合成

针对当前水相合成的量子点(QDs)光性能与稳定性等方面存在的不足,发展了基于聚合物多齿配体的水相制备策略.利用巯基修饰的聚丙烯酸(PAA-SH)作为多齿配体代替常用的巯基丙酸等单齿配体,结合微波辅助加热制备了CdTe量子点,研究了多齿配体对量子点的生长机制与荧光性能的影响.以PAA-SH为配体制备的CdTe量子点荧光性能优异(荧光量子效率(PLQY)可达75%),流体力学直径较小(~10 nm),稳定性也有明显提高.基于聚合物多齿配体的量子点制备技术有助于实现生物医学研究中急需的兼具高亮度、高稳定性、小尺寸等特征的高性能量子点生物探针的制备.     

CdTe量子点与蛋白质相互作用的荧光猝灭效应

本文在水热法合成水溶性CdTe及核壳结构CdTe/CdS量子点的基础上,分别研究了细胞色素c对CdTe量子点及CdTe/CdS核壳量子点荧光的猝灭效应和CdTe量子点对牛血清白蛋白荧光的猝灭效应,并阐述了猝灭机理。结果显示,细胞色素c对CdTe量子点的荧光猝灭效应具有一定的粒径依赖性,粒径越小,猝灭效应越强;细胞色素c对CdTe/CdS核壳量子点的猝灭效应比对CdTe量子点的更强,揭示了受激电子的表面传递机理。CdTe量子点通过松散牛血清白蛋白的螺旋结构而猝灭其荧光。     

Large-scale synthesis of nearly monodisperse CdSe/CdS core/shell nanocrystals using air-stable reagents via successive ion layer adsorption and reaction

Successive ion layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) originally developed for the deposition of thin films on solid substrates from solution baths is introduced as a technique for the growth of high-quality core/shell nanocrystals of compound semiconductors. The growth of the shell was designed to grow one monolayer at a time by alternating injections of air-stable and inexpensive cationic and anionic precursors into the reaction mixture with core nanocrystals. The principles of SILAR were demonstrated by the CdSe/CdS core/shell model system using its shell-thickness-dependent optical spectra as the probes with CdO and elemental S as the precursors. For this reaction system, a relatively high temperature, about 220-240 degrees C, was found to be essential for SILAR to fully occur. The synthesis can be readily performed on a multigram scale. The size distribution of the core/shell nanocrystals was maintained even after five monolayers of CdS shell (equivalent to about 10 times volume increase for a 3.5 nm CdSe nanocrystal) were grown onto the core nanocrystals. The epitaxial growth of the core/shell structures was verified by optical spectroscopy, TEM, XRD, and XPS. The photoluminescence quantum yield (PL QY) of the as-prepared CdSe/CdS core/shell nanocrystals ranged from 20% to 40%, and the PL full-width at half-maximum (fwhm) was maintained between 23 and 26 nm, even for those nanocrystals for which the UV-vis and PL peaks red-shifted by about 50 nm from that of the core nanocrystals. Several types of brightening phenomena were observed, some of which can further boost the PL QY of the core/shell nanocrystals. The CdSe/CdS core/shell nanocrystals were found to be superior in comparison to the highly luminescent CdSe plain core nanocrystals. The SILAR technique reported here can also be used for the growth of complex colloidal semiconductor nanostructures, such as quantum shells and colloidal quantum wells.     

Highly luminescent, stable, and water-soluble CdSe/CdS core-shell dendron nanocrystals with carboxylate anchoring groups

A dendron ligand with two carboxylate anchoring groups at its focal point and eight hydroxyl groups as its terminal groups was found to efficiently convert as-synthesized CdSe/CdS core-shell nanocrystals in toluene to water-soluble dendron-ligand stabilized nanocrystals (dendron nanocrystals). The resulting dendron nanocrystals retained 60% of the photoluminescence value of the original CdSe/CdS core-shell nanocrystals in toluene and were significantly brighter than the similar dendron nanocrystals with thiolate (deprotonated thiol group) as the anchoring group which retained just 10% of the photoluminescence value of the original CdSe/CdS core-shell nanocrystals in toluene. The carboxylate-based dendron nanocrystals survived UV irradiation in air for at least 13 days, about 9 times better than the thiolate-based dendron nanocrystals (35 h) and similar to that of the thiolate-based dendron-box stabilized CdSe/CdS core-shell nanocrystals (box nanocrystals). Upon UV irradiation, the dendron nanocrystals became even 2 times brighter than the original CdSe/CdS core-shell nanocrystals in toluene, and the UV-brightened PL can retain the brightness for at least several months. These stable and bright dendron nanocrystals were soluble in various aqueous media, including all common biological buffer solutions tested, for at least 1.5 years. In addition to their superior performance, the synthetic chemistry of carboxylate dendron ligands and the corresponding dendron nanocrystals is relatively simple and with high yield.     

Synthesis of Aqueous CdTe Nanocrystals with High Efficient Blue‐Green Emission of Exciton

As one of the most popular nanocrystals (NCs), aqueous CdTe NCs have very weak green emission under conventional synthesis conditions. In this work, we report the first example of blue‐emitting CdTe NCs directly synthesized in aqueous solution by slowing down the growth rate after nucleation. The key for the synthesis is the optimization of NC growth conditions, namely pH range of 7.5 to 8.5, TGA/Cd ratio of 3.6, Cd/Te ratio of 10, and Te concentration of 2×10^?5 mol/L, to get a slow growth rate after nucleation. The as‐prepared blue‐emitting CdTe NCs have small size (as small as 1.9 nm) and bright emission [with 4% photoluminescence quantum yield (PL QY) at 486 nm and 17% PLQY at 500 nm]. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images of the as‐prepared CdTe show monodispersed NCs which exhibit cubic zinc blend structure. Moreover, time‐resolved PL decay and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results show the as‐prepared NCs have better surface modification by ligand, which makes these luminescent small CdTe NCs have higher photoluminescence quantum yield, compared with NCs synthesized under conventional conditions.     

微波加热法水相合成梯度合金CdSeS量子点及其环境暴露下荧光稳定性研究

采用微波辅助加热法在水相中一步合成了梯度合金CdSeS量子点,荧光光谱和紫外吸收光谱表明,合成的CdSeS合金量子点具有较高的量子产率(30%左右)。X射线衍射分析和光电子能谱表征证明,合成的CdSeS量子点具有立方晶型,梯度合金结构,内部以CdSe为主,而外部主要以CdS为主;电子透射显微镜下观察到的量子点结晶度高,粒径小(仅2~3 nm),粒度分布均一。在此基础上探讨了所合成的合金量子点在氧化剂过氧化氢、不同的酸碱介质中及350 W氙灯的作用下其荧光光谱的稳定性。结果表明,该合金量子点的光稳定性与CdTe QDs相当,但具有更好的抗氧化性能和抗酸刻蚀性能,具有良好的应用前景。     

CdTe/CdS共敏化TiO2电极材料的制备与光电性能

将电沉积法和化学浴沉积法结合,分别将CdTe和CdS量子点纳米晶材料引入到TiO₂纳米管阵列上制备CdTe/CdS量子点共敏化TiO₂光电极。利用扫描电镜、X射线衍射和X射线能量色散光谱等测试手段对所得样品的形貌、晶型和组分进行表征。在模拟太阳光照射条件下,通过电化学工作站测试其光电化学性能。研究结果表明,相对于单一量子点敏化CdS/TiO₂和CdTe/TiO₂光电极而言,共敏化CdTe/CdS/TiO₂光电极表现出更好的光电转化性能,短路电流密度和光电转换效率分别可以达到3.1 mA·cm^-2和1.85%。此外,采用电化学阻抗测试技术对材料性能提升的原因进行深入的探究。     

CdTe/CdS共敏化TiO2电极材料的制备与光电性能

将电沉积法和化学浴沉积法结合,分别将CdTe和CdS量子点纳米晶材料引入到TiO_2纳米管阵列上制备CdTe/CdS量子点共敏化TiO_2光电极。利用扫描电镜、X射线衍射和X射线能量色散光谱等测试手段对所得样品的形貌、晶型和组分进行表征。在模拟太阳光照射条件下,通过电化学工作站测试其光电化学性能。研究结果表明,相对于单一量子点敏化CdS/TiO_2和CdTe/TiO_2光电极而言,共敏化CdTe/CdS/TiO_2光电极表现出更好的光电转化性能,短路电流密度和光电转换效率分别可以达到3.1 m A·cm~(-2)和1.85%。此外,采用电化学阻抗测试技术对材料性能提升的原因进行深入的探究。     

Aqueous synthesis of glutathione-capped CdTe/CdS/ZnS and CdTe/CdSe/ZnS core/shell/shell nanocrystal heterostructures

Here we demonstrate the aqueous synthesis of colloidal nanocrystal heterostructures consisting of the CdTe core encapsulated by CdS/ZnS or CdSe/ZnS shells using glutathione (GSH), a tripeptide, as the capping ligand. The inner CdTe/CdS and CdTe/CdSe heterostructures have type-I, quasi-type-II, or type-II band offsets depending on the core size and shell thickness, and the outer CdS/ZnS and CdSe/ZnS structures have type-I band offsets. The emission maxima of the assembled heterostructures were found to be dependent on the CdTe core size, with a wider range of spectral tunability observed for the smaller cores. Because of encapsulation effects, the formation of successive shells resulted in a considerable increase in the photoluminescence quantum yield; however, identifying optimal shell thicknesses was required to achieve the maximum quantum yield. Photoluminescence lifetime measurements revealed that the decrease in the quantum yield of thick-shell nanocrystals was caused by a substantial decrease in the radiative rate constant. By tuning the diameter of the core and the thickness of each shell, a broad range of high quantum yield (up to 45%) nanocrystal heterostructures with emission ranging from visible to NIR wavelengths (500-730 nm) were obtained. This versatile route to engineering the optical properties of nanocrystal heterostructures will provide new opportunities for applications in bioimaging and biolabeling.     

Silica Coating of Water-Soluble CdTe/CdS Core-Shell Nanocrystals by Microemulsion Method

"Using Te powder as a tellurium source and Na2S as a sulfur source, core-shell CdTe/CdS NPs were synthesized at 50 oC. UV-visible and photoluminescence (PL) spectra were used to probe the effect of CdS passivation on the CdTe quantum dots. As the thickness of CdS shell increases, there is a red-shift in the optical absorption spectra, as well as the PL spectra. The broadening absorption peaks and PL spectra indicate that the size distributions of CdTe/CdS NPs widen increasingly with the increase of CdS coverage. The PL spectra also show that the fluorescence intensity of CdTe QDs will increase when the particles are covered with CdS shell with ratio of S/Te less than 1.0, otherwise it will decrease if the ratio of S/Te is larger than 1.0. Furthermore, the (CdTe/CdS)@SiO2 particles were prepared using a water-in-oil microemulsion method at room temperature in which hydrolysis of tetraethyl orthosilicate leads to the formation of monodispersed silica nanospheres. The obtained (CdTe/CdS)@SiO2 particles show bright photoluminescence with their fluorescence intensity being enhanced 18.5% compared with that of CdTe NPs. TEM imaging shows that the diameter of these composite particles is 50 nm. These nanoparticles are suitable for biomarker applications since they are much smaller than cellular dimensions."     

Optical properties of Ag/CdTe nanocomposite self-organized by electrostatic interaction

Ag/CdTe nanocomposite was prepared via self-organization process by electrostatic interaction between positively charged CdTe quantum dots and negatively charged Ag nanoparticles and examined with respect to their optical properties. The positively charged CdTe quantum dots and negatively charged Ag nanoparticles were synthesized separately by modifying nanoparticles surface with cationic and anionic thiol compounds, respectively. The result showed that the mixing ratio of Ag nanoparticles to CdTe quantum dots is an important parameter for controlling resulting composites. The resulting solution is optically transparent if one component is in excess. Photoluminescence of CdTe quantum dots undergoes considerably quenching if CdTe nanocrystals are in excess and SERS spectra of BVPP absorbed on Ag colloid became stronger if Ag nanoparticles are in excess. Nevertheless, while the ratio is approximately 1, micrometer-sized solid composite is obtained with the elapse of 1h after mixing. SERS spectra for solid composite only exhibit the signals of the CdS nanocrystal which reflected that prolonged refluxing during the synthesis leads to a partial hydrolysis of the thiols and to the incorporation of the sulfur from the thiol molecules into the the growing nanoparticles to form mixed CdTe(S) nanocrystal, similar to CdTe/CdS core/shell structure. From the results, we conclude that optical properties of Ag/CdTe are dependent on the mixing ratio of both nanoparticles.     

CdTe/CdS量子点的Ⅰ-Ⅱ型结构转变与荧光性质

制备了壳层厚度可以精确控制的CdTe/CdS核壳量子点, 利用紫外-可见吸收光谱、光致发光光谱、透射电镜和时间分辨光谱等技术, 分析了CdS壳层厚度对CdTe量子点的荧光量子产率和光谱结构的影响规律. 发现了不同于CdSe/CdS, CdSe/ZnS, CdTe/ZnS等核壳量子点的荧光峰展宽、大幅度红移以及荧光寿命大幅度增加现象. 根据能带的位置关系, 随着CdS厚度的增加, CdTe从Ⅰ型结构逐渐过渡到Ⅱ型核壳结构. 对于Ⅱ型CdTe/CdS核壳量子点, 不仅存在CdTe核区导带电子与价带空穴间的直接复合, 还存在CdS壳层导带电子与CdTe核价带空穴界面处的间接复合, 发光机制的变化导致荧光峰的展宽、明显红移和荧光寿命的增加. 当壳层过厚时, 壳层表面新引入的缺陷会阻碍荧光寿命和量子产率的进一步提高.