n-type colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals

Electrochemical charging of CdSe quantum dot films: dependence on void size and counterion proximity

Films of colloidal quantum dots (QDs) show great promise for application in optoelectronic devices. Great advances have been made in recent years in designing efficient QD solar cells and LEDs. A very important aspect in the design of devices based on QD films is the knowledge of their absolute energy levels. Unfortunately, reported energy levels vary markedly depending on the employed measurement technique and the environment of the sample. In this report, we determine absolute energy levels of QD films by electrochemical charge injection. The concomitant change in optical absorption of the film allows quantification of the number of charges in quantum-confined levels and thereby their energetic position. We show here that the size of voids in the QD films (i.e., the space between the quantum dots) determines the amount of charges that may be injected into the films. This effect is attributed to size exclusion of countercharges from the electrolyte solution. Further, the energy of the QD levels depends on subtle changes in the QD film and the supporting electrolyte: the size of the cation and the QD ligand length. These nontrivial effects can be explained by the proximity of the cation to the QD surface and a concomitant lowering of the electrochemical potential. Our findings help explain the wide range of reported values for QD energy levels and redefine the limit of applicability of electrochemical measurements on QD films. Finally, the finding that the energy of QD levels depends on ligand length and counterion size may be exploited in optimized designs of QD sensitized solar cells.

A charge-orbital balance picture of doping in colloidal quantum dot solids

We present a framework--validated using both modeling and experiment--to predict doping in CQD films. In the ionic semiconductors widely deployed in CQD films, the framework reduces to a simple accounting of the contributions of the oxidation state of each constituent, including both inorganic species and organic ligands. We use density functional theory simulations to confirm that the type of doping can be reliably predicted based on the overall stoichiometry of the CQDs, largely independent of microscopic geometrical bonding configurations. Studies employing field-effect transistors constructed from CQDs that have undergone various chemical treatments, coupled with Rutherford backscattering and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to provide compositional analysis, allow us to test and confirm the proposed model in an experimental framework. We investigate both p- and n-type electronic doping spanning a wide range of carrier concentrations from 10(16) cm(-3) to over 10(18) cm(-3), and demonstrate reversible switching between p- and n-type doping by changing the CQD stoichiometry. We show that the summation of the contributions from all cations and anions within the film can be used to predict accurately the majority carrier type. The findings enable predictable control over majority carrier concentration via tuning of the overall stoichiometry.

Redox brightening of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals using molecular reductants

Chemical reductants of sub-conduction-band potentials are demonstrated to induce large photoluminescence enhancement in colloidal ZnSe-based nanocrystals. The photoluminescence quantum yield of colloidal Mn(2+)-doped ZnSe nanocrystals has been improved from 14% to 80% simply by addition of an outer-sphere reductant. Up to 48-fold redox brightening is observed for nanocrystals with lower starting quantum yields. These increases are quickly reversed upon exposure to air and are temporary even under anaerobic conditions. This redox brightening process offers a new and systematic approach to understanding redox-active surface "trap states" and their contributions to the physical properties of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals.

Photoswitchable quantum dots by controlling the photoinduced electron transfers

We report photoluminescence (PL) modulation of quantum dots (QDs) by photoinduced electron transfers from acridine-1,8-dione derivative surface ligands. Reversible PL switching upon many repeated cycles was demonstrated, as alternating on and off of the UV excitation for the surface ligand has successfully resulted in the QD PL modulation.

Photocatalytic activity of quantum dots incorporated in molecular sieves for generation of hydrogen

MCM-41 molecular sieve coupled with lead sulfide quantum dots (PbS-MCM-41) was prepared by ion-exchange method. The photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), UV-vis spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy (IR) and BET (Brunauer-Emmett-Teller) experiments. Exciton absorption peak at higher energy than the fundamental absorption edge of bulk lead sulfide indicates quantum confinement effects in quantum dots as a consequence of their small size. The hydrogen production rate from water photocatalytic decomposition under visible light irradiation (λ>400nm) over PbS nanoparticles formed in mesoporous material was much higher compared to the bulk PbS.

Bandlike transport in strongly coupled and doped quantum dot solids: a route to high-performance thin-film electronics

We report bandlike transport in solution-deposited, CdSe QD thin-films with room temperature field-effect mobilities for electrons of 27 cm(2)/(V s). A concomitant shift and broadening in the QD solid optical absorption compared to that of dispersed samples is consistent with electron delocalization and measured electron mobilities. Annealing indium contacts allows for thermal diffusion and doping of the QD thin-films, shifting the Fermi energy, filling traps, and providing access to the bands. Temperature-dependent measurements show bandlike transport to 220 K on a SiO(2) gate insulator that is extended to 140 K by reducing the interface trap density using an Al(2)O(3)/SiO(2) gate insulator. The use of compact ligands and doping provides a pathway to high performance, solution-deposited QD electronics and optoelectronics.

Electronic impurity doping in CdSe nanocrystals

We dope CdSe nanocrystals with Ag impurities and investigate their optical and electrical properties. Doping leads not only to dramatic changes but surprising complexity. The addition of just a few Ag atoms per nanocrystal causes a large enhancement in the fluorescence, reaching efficiencies comparable to core-shell nanocrystals. While Ag was expected to be a substitutional acceptor, nonmonotonic trends in the fluorescence and Fermi level suggest that Ag changes from an interstitial (n-type) to a substitutional (p-type) impurity with increased doping.

Electrical Transport in Colloidal Quantum Dot Films

In nanocrystal solids, the small density of states of quantum dots makes it difficult to achieve metallic conductivity without band-like transport. However, to achieve band-like transport, the energy scale of the disorder should be smaller than the coupling energy. This is unlikely with the present systems due to the size polydispersivity. Transport by hopping may nevertheless lead to an increased mobility with decreasing temperature for some temperature range, and such behavior at finite temperature is not proof of band-like conduction. To date, at low temperature, variable range hopping in semiconductor or weakly coupled metal nanocrystal solids dominates transport, as in disordered semiconductors.

Photoluminescence brightening via electrochemical trap passivation in ZnSe and Mn(2+)-doped ZnSe quantum dots

Spectroelectrochemical experiments on wide-gap semiconductor nanocrystals (ZnSe and Mn(2+)-doped ZnSe) have allowed the influence of trap electrochemistry on nanocrystal photoluminescence to be examined in the absence of semiconductor band filling. Large photoluminescence electrobrightening is observed in both materials upon application of a reducing potential and is reversed upon return to the equilibrium potential. Electrobrightening is correlated with the transfer of electrons into nanocrystal films, implicating reductive passivation of midgap surface electron traps. Analysis indicates that the electrobrightening magnitude is determined by competition between electron trapping and photoluminescence (ZnSe) or energy transfer (Mn(2+)-doped ZnSe) dynamics within the excitonic excited state, and that electron trapping is extremely fast (k(trap) ≈ 10(11) s(-1)). These results shed new light on the complex surface chemistries of semiconductor nanocrystals.

Copper-doped inverted core/shell nanocrystals with "permanent" optically active holes

We have developed a new class of colloidal nanocrystals composed of Cu-doped ZnSe cores overcoated with CdSe shells. Via spectroscopic and magneto-optical studies, we conclusively demonstrate that Cu impurities represent paramagnetic +2 species and serve as a source of permanent optically active holes. This implies that the Fermi level is located below the Cu(2+)/Cu(1+) state, that is, in the lower half of the forbidden gap, which is a signature of a p-doped material. It further suggests that the activation of optical emission due to the Cu level requires injection of only an electron without a need for a valence-band hole. This peculiar electron-only emission mechanism is confirmed by experiments in which the titration of the nanocrystals with hole-withdrawing molecules leads to enhancement of Cu-related photoluminescence while simultaneously suppressing the intrinsic, band-edge exciton emission. In addition to containing permanent optically active holes, these newly developed materials show unprecedented emission tunability from near-infrared (1.2 eV) to the blue (3.1 eV) and reduced losses from reabsorption due to a large Stokes shift (up to 0.7 eV). These properties make them very attractive for applications in light-emission and lasing technologies and especially for the realization of novel device concepts such as "zero-threshold" optical gain.

In situ reversible tuning of photoluminescence of Mn2+-doped ZnS quantum dots by redox chemistry

Herein we report the development of a new method for in situ reversible tuning of photoluminescence properties of quantum dots (Qdots) by partial oxidation of population of the emitting species and subsequent chemical reduction of the oxidized form. The concept has been demonstrated using Mn(2+)-doped ZnS Qdots stabilized by acetyl acetonate. Treatment of an aqueous solution of the Qdots (with Mn(OAc)(2) being the source of Mn used for the synthesis of the Qdots) by potassium peroxodisulfate (KPS) led to reduction of intensity of emission due to Mn(2+) ((4)T(1)-(6)A(1)). Subsequent treatment of the solution containing KPS-treated Qdots with NaBH(4) led to regaining of intensity, thus providing reversibility to the tuning, which was possible for more than one cycle. Electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopic investigations revealed reduction of the population of Mn(2+) upon treatment with KPS, whereas it went back up upon further treatment with NaBH(4). Interestingly, a mixed population of oxidation states of Mn was indicated to be present in the Qdots prepared using KMnO(4) as the source of Mn. The fluorescence intensity of the Qdots so prepared increased upon treatment with NaBH(4) following synthesis, which was not possible when the source of Mn was Mn(OAc)(2). Transmission electron microscopic and X-ray diffraction studies indicated that oxidation and reduction did not change the sizes of Qdots significantly.

Heavily doped semiconductor nanocrystal quantum dots

Doping of semiconductors by impurity atoms enabled their widespread technological application in microelectronics and optoelectronics. However, doping has proven elusive for strongly confined colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals because of the synthetic challenge of how to introduce single impurities, as well as a lack of fundamental understanding of this heavily doped limit under strong quantum confinement. We developed a method to dope semiconductor nanocrystals with metal impurities, enabling control of the band gap and Fermi energy. A combination of optical measurements, scanning tunneling spectroscopy, and theory revealed the emergence of a confined impurity band and band-tailing. Our method yields n- and p-doped semiconductor nanocrystals, which have potential applications in solar cells, thin-film transistors, and optoelectronic devices.

Control of the carrier type in InAs nanocrystal films by predeposition incorporation of Cd

Nanocrystal (NC) films have been proposed as an alternative to bulk semiconductors for electronic applications such as solar cells and photodetectors. One outstanding challenge in NC electronics is to robustly control the carrier type to create stable p-n homojunction-based devices. We demonstrate that the postsynthetic addition of Cd to InAs nanocrystals switches the resulting InAs:Cd NC films from n-type to p-type when operating in a field effect transistor. This method presents a stable, facile way to control the carrier type of InAs nanocrystals prior to deposition. We present two mechanisms to explain the observed switch in carrier type. In mechanism 1, Cd atoms are incorporated at In sites in the lattice and act as acceptor defects, forming a partially compensated p-type semiconductor. In mechanism 2, Cd atoms passivate donor-type InAs surface states and create acceptor-type surface states. This work represents a critical step toward the creation of p-n homojunction-based NC electronics.

Monolayer suppression of transport imaged in annealed PbSe nanocrystal arrays

We use correlated electrostatic force, transmission electron, and atomic force microscopy (EFM, TEM, and AFM) to visualize charge transport in monolayers and up to five layers of PbSe nanocrystal arrays drop-cast on electrode devices. Charge imaging reveals that current paths are dependent on the locally varying thickness and continuity of an array. Nanocrystal monolayers show suppressed conduction compared to bilayers and other multilayers, suggesting a departure from linear scaling of conductivity with array thickness. Moreover, multilayer regions appear electrically isolated if connected solely by a monolayer. Partial suppression is also observed within multilayer regions that contain narrow junctions only several nanocrystals wide. High-resolution TEM structural imaging of the measured devices reveals a larger reduction of inter-nanocrystal spacing in multilayers compared to monolayers upon vacuum-annealing, offering a likely explanation for the difference in conductivity between these two cases. This restriction of transport by monolayers and narrow junctions is an important factor that must be addressed in future designs of optoelectronic devices based on nanocrystals.

Interaction of theory and experiment: examples from single molecule studies of nanoparticles

This article is in part the author's perspective on the revolution that has occurred in theoretical chemistry during the past half-century. In this period much of theoretical chemistry has moved from its initial emphasis on analytic treatments, resulting in equations for physical chemical and chemical phenomena, to the detailed computation of many different systems and processes. In the best sense the old and the new are complementary and their coexistence can benefit both. Experiment too has seen major developments. One of the newer types of experiment is that of single molecule studies. They range from those on small inorganic and organic nanoparticles to large biological species. We illustrate some of the issues that arise, using the topic of 'quantum dots' (QDs), and choosing a particular inorganic nanoparticle, CdSe, the most studied of these systems. Its study reflects the problems that arise in experiment and in theories in this field. The complementary nature of the conventional ensemble experiments and the new single molecule experiments is described and is illustrated by trajectories for the two types of experiments. The research in the QD field is both experimentally and theoretically a currently ongoing process, for which the answers are not fully known in spite of the large body of research. The detailed role of surface states is part of the problem. The field continues to yield new and unexpected results. In a sense this part of the article is an interim report that illustrates one analytic approach to the topic and where computer calculations and simulations can be expected to provide added insight.

Giant Zeeman splitting in nucleation-controlled doped CdSe:Mn2+ quantum nanoribbons

Doping of semiconductor nanocrystals by transition-metal ions has attracted tremendous attention owing to their nanoscale spintronic applications. Such doping is, however, difficult to achieve in low-dimensional strongly quantum confined nanostructures by conventional growth procedures. Here we demonstrate that the incorporation of manganese ions up to 10% into CdSe quantum nanoribbons can be readily achieved by a nucleation-controlled doping process. The cation-exchange reaction of (CdSe)(13) clusters with Mn(2+) ions governs the Mn(2+) incorporation during the nucleation stage. This highly efficient Mn(2+) doping of the CdSe quantum nanoribbons results in giant exciton Zeeman splitting with an effective g-factor of approximately 600, the largest value seen so far in diluted magnetic semiconductor nanocrystals. Furthermore, the sign of the s-d exchange is inverted to negative owing to the exceptionally strong quantum confinement in our nanoribbons. The nucleation-controlled doping strategy demonstrated here thus opens the possibility of doping various strongly quantum confined nanocrystals for diverse applications.

Synthesis of Cu-doped InP nanocrystals (d-dots) with ZnSe diffusion barrier as efficient and color-tunable NIR emitters

Efficient Cu-doped InP quantum dots (Cu:InP d-dots) emitters were successfully synthesized by epitaxial growth of a ZnSe diffusion barrier for the dopants. The Cu dopant emission of the Cu:InP/ZnSe core/shell d-dots covered the important red and near-infrared (NIR) window for biomedical applicaitons, from 630 to 1100 nm, by varying the size of the InP host nanocrystals. These new d-dots emitters not only compensate for the emission wavelength of the existing noncadmium d-dots emitters, Cu- and Mn-doped ZnSe d-dots (450-610 nm), but also offer a complete series of efficient nanocrystal emitters based on InP nanocrystals. The one-pot synthetic scheme for the formation of Cu:InP/ZnSe core/shell d-dots was successfully established by systematically studying the doping process, the dopant concentration-dependent photophysical properties, and the dopant diffusion during shell epitaxy, etc. Complete elimination of InP bandgap emission and efficient pure dopant emission (with photoluminescence quantum yield as high as between 35-40%) of the core/shell d-dots were achieved by optimizing the final doping level and the diffusion barrier thickness.

Electron counting spectroscopy of CdSe quantum dots

We report on the electronic properties of semiconducting CdSe quantum dots that can be filled or emptied with many electrons. To accomplish that, we employ a device layout where the investigated quantum dot is attached to only one electrode, a carbon nanotube. Measurements consist of detecting individual electrons transferred onto the quantum dot (by monitoring the nanotube resistance) while sweeping the electrochemical potential of the dot with a gate. This technique allows us to detect the energy gap of the semiconducting quantum dot and to access many electronic levels. We exploit the latter finding to study the statistical aspects of the spectrum of the quantum dot. The measured spectrum distribution approaches the bimodal Wigner distribution, which is the most basic prediction of the random matrix theory applied to quantum dots.

Alternating current driven electroluminescence from ZnSe/ZnS:Mn/ZnS nanocrystals

We present a novel technique for room temperature, solution-based fabrication of alternating current thin-film electroluminescent (AC-TFEL) devices using phosphor-doped nanocrystals. Synthesis for stable ZnSe/ZnS:Mn/ZnS nanocrystals that exhibit a quantum yield of 65 +/- 5% is outlined, and their electroluminescence is demonstrated in structures consisting of only wide band gap ceramic layers. Both the nanocrystal and the ceramic films have minimal absorption across the visible light spectrum, enabling us to demonstrate transparent AC-TFEL devices.

Trion decay in colloidal quantum dots

Using charged films of colloidal CdSe/CdS core/shell quantum dots of approximately 3.5 to 4.5 nm core diameters and 0.6 to 1.2 nm thick CdS shells, the radiative and nonradiative decay of the negatively charged exciton, the trion T-, are measured. The T- radiative rate is faster than the exciton by a factor of 2.2 +/- 0.4 and estimated at approximately 10 ns. The T- lifetime is approximately 0.7-1.5 ns for the samples measured and is longer than the biexciton lifetime by a factor or 7.5 +/- 1.7.

First-Principles Study of Magnetic Properties of 3d Transition Metals Doped in ZnO Nanowires

The defect formation energies of transition metals (Cr, Fe, and Ni) doped in the pseudo-H passivated ZnO nanowires and bulk are systematically investigated using first-principles methods. The general chemical trends of the nanowires are similar to those of the bulk. We also show that the formation energy increases as the diameter of the nanowire decreases, indicating that the doping of magnetic ions in the ZnO nanowire becomes more difficult with decreasing diameter. We also systematically calculate the ferromagnetic properties of transition metals doped in the ZnO nanowire and bulk, and find that Cr ions of the nanowire favor ferromagnetic state, which is consistent with the experimental results. We also find that the ferromagnetic coupling state of Cr is more stable in the nanowire than in the bulk, which may lead to a higher T(c) useful for the nano-materials design of spintronics.

Plasmon-phonon coupling in charged n-type CdSe quantum dots: A THz time-domain spectroscopic study

This work aims to experimentally determine the polarizability of confined electron in CdSe quantum dots (QD). The dielectric response of uncharged and charged CdSe quantum dots (3.2 and 6.3 nm) has been measured using terahertz time-domain spectroscopy in the frequency range of 2.0-7.0 THz. A strong coupling between the surface plasmon and surface phonons appears upon charging the QDs. The absolute polarizability of an electron in 3.2 and 6.3 nm charged QDs are experimentally determined to be 0.5 +/- 0.1 x 10(3) A3 and 14.6 +/- 0.3 x 10(3) A3, respectively, and the values agree reasonably well with theory and the previous experiment. The observed plasmon-phonon coupling is expected to play an important role in electron relaxation in absence of a hole in CdSe QDs.

Measurement of nanoparticle mass distributions by laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry

In this paper, access to the mass distribution analysis of nanoparticles is described based on laser desorption/ionization and time of flight mass spectrometry. Two examples are given, demonstrating the accurate mass distribution analysis of nanoparticles fabricated both ex situ and in situ during the laser-assisted desorption process. The potentials and the limitations of the method are discussed, with special emphasis on carbonaceous clusters and molecules.

Selected-Control Hydrothermal Synthesis and Formation Mechanism of Monazite- and Zircon-Type LaVO4 Nanocrystals

Selective-controlled structure and shape of LaVO(4) nanocrystals were successfully synthesized by a simple hydrothermal method without the presence of catalysts or templates. It was found that tuning the pH of the growth solution was a crucial step for the control of the structure transformation, that is, from monoclinic (m-) to tetragonal (t-) phase, and morphology evolution of LaVO(4) nanocrystals. Further studies demonstrated that the morphology of the product had a strong dependence on the initial lanthanum sources. In the La(NO(3))(3) or LaCl(3) reaction system, pure t-LaVO(4) nanorods with uniform diameters about 10 nm could be obtained. But when using La(2)(SO(4))(3) as the lanthanum source, we can get t-LaVO(4) nanowiskers with broomlike morphology. The detailed systematic study had shown that a special dissolution-recrystallization transformation mechanism as well as an Ostwald ripening process was responsible for the phase control and anisotropic morphology evolution of the LaVO(4) nanocrystals. As a result, the controlled synthesis of m- and t-LaVO(4) not only has great theoretical significance in studying the polymorph control and selective synthesis of inorganic materials but also benefits the potential applications based on LaVO(4) nanocrystals owing to the unusual luminescent properties induced by structural transformation.

Photocontrolled Magnetization of CdS-Modified Prussian Blue Nanoparticles

The first photocontrollable magnetic nanoparticles containing CdS and Prussian blue (PB) have been created using reverse micelles as nanoreactors. Photoinduced electron transfer from CdS to PB in the reverse micelle changed the magnetic properties of the composite nanoparticles from ferromagnetic to paramagnetic. The magnetization in the ferromagnetic region below 4 K was substantially decreased after UV light illumination and could be restored almost to its original level by thermal treatment at room temperature. This novel strategy of designing composite nanoparticles containing photoconductive semiconductors and magnetic materials to create photoswitchable magnetic materials may open many possibilities in the development of magneto-optical devices.